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Big Pod Ceanothus
Ceanothus megacarpus
  
About Big Pod Ceanothus (Ceanothus megacarpus) 10 Nurseries Carry This Plant Ceanothus megacarpus is a species of flowering shrub in the Rhamnaceae (Buckthorn) family known by the common name Bigpod Ceanothus. This Ceanothus is endemic to California, where its distribution extends from Santa Barbara County to San Diego County and includes most of the Channel Islands. There are two recognized varieties; var. insularis is a rare form found primarily on the Channel Islands. This shrub may exceed 4 meters in height but usually less and is covered in thick oval to nearly rectangular evergreen leaves. The leaves may be either opposite or alternate, sometimes on the same plant. The flower clusters are small and sparse and are filled with small white to pale lavender flowers with dark centers. The fruit is a large, bumpy, spherical red-green capsule about a centimeter wide. The inside of the capsule is divided into 3 valves, each valve holding a seed. The capsule dehisces neatly in two at the central band to release the seeds. This is a showy plant in early spring.
Plant Description
Plant Type
Plant Type
Shrub

Size
Size
6 - 15 ft tall
6 - 15 ft wide

Form
Form
Upright

Growth Rate
Growth Rate
Moderate

Dormancy
Dormancy
Evergreen

Fragrance
Fragrance
Fragrant - Pleasant

Flower Color
Flower Color
White, Lavender

Flowering Season
Flowering Season
Winter, Spring

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

 
Butterflies & moths hosted ( 5 confirmed , 76 likely * ) SHOW ALL

Landscaping Information
Sun
Sun
Full Sun

Moisture
Moisture
Very Low

Summer Irrigation
Summer Irrigation
Never irrigate once established

Nurseries
Nurseries

Ease of Care
Ease of Care
Moderately Easy

Cold Tolerance
Cold Tolerance
Tolerates cold to 20° F

Soil Drainage
Soil Drainage
Medium

Soil Description
Soil Description
Tolerates various soils. Soil PH: 6.0 - 8.0

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

Companion Plants
Companion Plants
Use with other south coast chaparral shrubs, of which there are many, including Chamise (Adenostema fasciculatum), Manzanita (Arctostaphylos and Xylococcus sp.), Viguiera (Bahiopsis laciniata), Barberry (Berberis aquifolium or nevinii), blue-flowered Ceanothus such as C. tomentosus, Mountain Mahogany (Cercocarpus betuloides or minutiflorus), Summer Holly (Comarostaphylis diversifolia), Tree Poppy (Dendromecon rigida), Bush Sunflower (Encelia californica), Buckwheat (Eriogonum sp.), Flannelbush (Fremontodendron sp.), Chaparral Yucca (Hesperoyucca whipplei), Toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia), Chaparral Mallow (Malacothamnus fasciculatus), Scrub Oak (Quercus berberidifolia or dumosa), and Sages (Salvia sp.)

Maintenance
Maintenance
Can be pruned to a standard tree form

Propagation
Propagation?
For propagating by seed: Hot water treatment.

Natural Setting
Site Type
Site Type
Rocky, dry slopes, ridges, canyons and flats as part of southern chaparral

Climate
Climate
Annual Precipitation: 5.6" - 37.0", Summer Precipitation: 0.13" - 1.83", Coldest Month: 39.8" - 56.6", Hottest Month: 61.7" - 84.0", Humidity: 0.74" - 35.15", Elevation: 1" - 5719"

Alternative Names
Common Names: Big-pod Ceanothus, Bigpod 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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