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Buck Brush
Ceanothus cuneatus
  
About Buck Brush (Ceanothus cuneatus) 43 Nurseries Carry This Plant Buckbrush (Ceanothus cuneatus) is a flowering shrub in the Buckthorn family that is one of the most common and widespread native plants in California. It flowers abundantly in spring, bearing rounded bunches of tiny white flowers that are sometimes tinted strongly with blue or lavender. It is a spreading bush, rounded to sprawling with evergreen leaves that are stiff, tough and fleshy. The fruit is a tiny round capsule with horns. This plant may vary in appearance due to its wide distribution and because it hybridizes easily with similar species.

Buckbrush is tough and drought adapted. It takes full sun and is adaptable to different types of soil so long as it is well-draining. It will even grow well in serpentine soil. It is recommended as both an informal hedge and a garden focus.

It supports insects, especially bees. Butterflies are attracted to the flowers and are known to host 9 species of butterfly and moth with a huge total of 86 species likely. Harvester ants have been known to cache the seeds, which can lie dormant for a long time since fire is required for germination.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Shrub

Size
Size
5 - 12 ft tall
5 - 12 ft wide

Form
Form
Upright, Rounded, Spreading

Growth Rate
Growth Rate
Fast, Moderate

Dormancy
Dormancy
Evergreen

Fragrance
Fragrance
Fragrant - Pleasant

Flower Color
Flower Color
White

Flowering Season
Flowering Season
Summer, Winter, Spring

Wildlife Supported
 
Insects, especially bees and butterflies, are attracted to the flowers. Plants in the Ceanothus genus are host plants to the Spring Azure, Echo Blue, Pacuvius Duskywing, California Tortoiseshell, Pale Swallowtail, and Hedgerow Hairstreak butterflies.

Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Full Sun

Moisture
Moisture
Very 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 -10 - 0° F

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Fast

Soil Description
Soil Description
Variable but needs fast drainage. Tolerates Serpentine Soil. Soil PH: 6 - 8

Common uses
Common uses
Bank Stabilization, Hedges, Deer Resistant, Bird Gardens, Butterfly Gardens, Bee Gardens

Propagation
Propagation?
For propagating by seed: Hot water and 3 mos. stratification. Alternative treatment: boil in water 1 min.; then, instead of stratification, soak in 400 ppm GA, 13 hrs.; air dry 4 days; soak in 3% thiourea 5 mins. Seeds may then be sown or dried again and stored. This quick treatment gave 41% germination for Ceanothus cuneatus. (Adams et al. 1961).

Natural Setting
Site Type
Site Type
Dry fans, slopes, ridges

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 5.2" - 151.0", Summer Precipitation: 0.14" - 5.94", Coldest Month: 29.4" - 55.7", Hottest Month: 47.2" - 80.8", Humidity: 0.09" - 30.56", Elevation: -14" - 9002"

Alternative Names
Common Names: Buckbrush, Wedgeleaf Ceanothus


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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