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Big Berry Manzanita
Arctostaphylos glauca
  
About Big Berry Manzanita (Arctostaphylos glauca) 31 Nurseries Carry This Plant Big Berry Manzanita (Arctostaphylos glauca) is a large shrub to small tree native to California and Baja California, where it grows in the chaparral and woodland of coastal and inland hills. Individuals growing in desert regions tend to be shorter than those on the coast. Unlike some manzanita species, Big Berry Manzanita cannot resprout from its stump after fire; instead, it produces generous seed, which facilitates greater plant diversity.

Leaves are light gray-green and up to 2 inches long.

The flower cluster holds hanging bunches of narrow urn-shaped white flowers. The edible fruit, the largest of any manzanita, is round or egg-shaped and light red. The berry has a thick pulp covered in a tough, sticky coat, with each containing a single large seed.

The shrub reproduces by seed and by layering. Seeds require exposure to fire before they can germinate, and seedlings often appear in profusion after a fire. It is a long-lived species, reaching 100 years of age or more, and it does not begin to fruit until it is around 20 years old.

Best to plant Bigberry Manzanitason rocky slopes. In drier parts of its range, this plant does better on north-facing slopes or near creeks or irrigated areas, or in partly shaded spots. Best to always avoid south-facing slopes. Bigberry manzanita will also usually do better if planted near larger rocks, or at least with rocks placed around it. After the first year, direct summer water will often kill this plant.

In its native range, this is one of the easier manzanita species to grow in California. Can still be tough in the driest areas at the edge of its range, particularly in Southern California.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Shrub

Size
Size
3.3 - 20 ft tall
6 - 20 ft wide

Form
Form
Upright, Upright Columnar

Growth Rate
Growth Rate
Moderate, Slow

Dormancy
Dormancy
Evergreen

Fragrance
Fragrance
Slight

Flower Color
Flower Color
White, Pink

Flowering Season
Flowering Season
Winter, Spring

Wildlife Supported
 
Insects (bees, butterflies) and hummingbirds are attracted to the flowers. Other birds are attracted to the fruits.

 
Butterflies & moths hosted ( 5 confirmed , 48 likely * ) SHOW ALL

Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Full Sun

Moisture
Moisture
Low

Summer Irrigation
Summer Irrigation
Max 1x / month once established

Nurseries
Nurseries

Ease of Care
Ease of Care
Moderately Easy

Cold Tolerance
Cold Tolerance
Tolerates cold to 0° F

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Fast, Medium

Soil Description
Soil Description
Can tolerate heavy soil on slopes but does best in well-drained soil. Tolerates Serpentine Soil,Tolerates Sodic Soil. Soil PH: 6.0 - 8.0

Common uses
Common uses
Hedges, Deer Resistant, Bird Gardens, Hummingbird Gardens, Bee Gardens

Maintenance
Maintenance
May be susceptible to leaf galls, but these usually do not cause long-term damage and do not usually require action.

Propagation
Propagation?
By seed or layering.  For propagating by seed: Soak in concentrated H2SO4 for 6 to 15 hours. (USDA Forest Service 1974). For the acid treatment, single nutlets and stone pieces (often without embryos) and entire stones should be treated separately, as they require different amounts of time in acid (Giersback 1937). For all species, an alternate method is fire treatment in fall; this gives germination by spring. More easily propagated from tip cuttings in winter using bottom heat.

Sunset Zones
Sunset Zones?
7, 11, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24

Natural Setting
Site Type
Site Type
Rocky chaparral slopes, well-drained flats of the coast and inland to the Coast Ranges, desert transition, and Joshua Tree Woodland, usually below 4500 feet, with scattered locations in the Central Valley and Sierra foothills.

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 5.3" - 52.5", Summer Precipitation: 0.14" - 3.18", Coldest Month: 31.9" - 54.5", Hottest Month: 53.1" - 84.5", Humidity: 0.45" - 36.25", Elevation: 24" - 9849"

Alternative Names
Common Names: Big-berry Manzanita, Bigberry Manzanita


Sources include: Wikipedia. All text shown in the "About" section of these pages is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Plant observation data provided by the participants of the California Consortia of Herbaria, Sunset information provided by Jepson Flora Project. Propogation from seed information provided by the Santa Barbara Botanical Garden from "Seed Propagation of Native California Plants" by Dara E. Emery. Sources of plant photos include CalPhotos, Wikimedia Commons, and independent plant photographers who have agreed to share their images with Calscape. Other general sources of information include Calflora, CNPS Manual of Vegetation Online, Jepson Flora Project, Las Pilitas, Theodore Payne, Tree of Life, The Xerces Society, and information provided by CNPS volunteer editors, with special thanks to Don Rideout. Climate data used in creation of plant range maps is from PRISM Climate Group, Oregon State University, using 30 year (1981-2010) annual "normals" at an 800 meter spatial resolution.

Links:   Jepson eFlora Taxon Page  CalPhotos  Wikipedia  Calflora


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