Arctostaphylos manzanita
Arctostaphylos pacifica
common manzanita, whiteleaf manzanita
Pacific manzanita
petiole 6–12 mm;
blade bright green or glaucous, shiny or dull, widely ovate or oblong-ovate to obovate, 2–5 × 1–3.5 cm, base rounded to ± cuneate, margins entire, plane, surfaces smooth or scabrous, puberulent or veins finely hairy.
petiole 2–4 mm;
blade light green abaxially, dark green adaxially, shiny, elliptic, 1–2 × 0.5–1 cm, base cuneate, margins serrulate, plane, surfaces smooth, sparsely hairy.
panicles, 3–7-branched;
immature inflorescence ± abruptly deflexed, branches spreading, axis 1.5–4.5 cm, 1+ mm diam., glabrous, sparsely short-hairy, or sparsely glandular-hairy, not viscid;
bracts not fully appressed, scalelike, deltate, 2–4 mm, apex mucronate or acuminate, surfaces glabrous or sparsely hairy to finely glandular-hairy.
racemes, (simple or 1-branched);
immature inflorescence pendent, (congested), axis 0.5–1 cm, 1+ mm diam., short-hairy;
bracts appressed, scalelike, awl-like, 0.5–1 mm, apex acute, glabrous.
3–8 mm, glabrous.
3–5 mm, glabrous.
corolla white, conic to urceolate;
ovary glabrous or minutely stipitate glandular-hairy.
corolla white, urceolate;
ovary glabrous.
depressed-globose, 8–12 mm diam., hairy or glabrous, stipitate-glandular or smooth.
(reddish), globose, 6–8 mm diam., glabrous.
distinct, sometimes connate.
distinct.
Arctostaphylos manzanita
Arctostaphylos pacifica
Subspecies 6 (6 in the flora).
Arctostaphylos manzanita is usually found in northern California in oak woodlands, chaparral, and open conifer forests. Subspecies manzanita is widespread throughout the Sierra Nevada foothills, north through the Cascades, and at lower elevations in the North Coast Ranges. The other subspecies are generally narrowly distributed.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Of conservation concern.
A distinctive species with an uncertain origin, Arctostaphylos pacifica has often been relegated to hybrid status and ignored; it displays a number of unique characters not found in any other species. It is found only at one location, San Bruno Mountain, the northern part of the Santa Cruz Mountains, San Mateo County. The relationships of this species need additional study.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Burls present; plants resprouting after fire | subsp. roofii |
1. Burls absent; plants killed by fire | → 2 |
2. Leaf blades lightly to strongly glaucous-green (twigs sometimes sparsely glandular-hairy). | subsp. glaucescens |
2. Leaf blades dull to shiny green, not glaucous | → 3 |
3. Ovaries and fruits glandular-hairy; stones often connate into single sphere, sometimes distinct. | subsp. elegans |
3. Ovaries and fruits glabrous or white-hairy, eglandular; stones distinct | → 4 |
4. Twigs glandular-hairy; leaf blades dull green. | subsp. wieslanderi |
4. Twigs glabrous or sparsely short-hairy; leaf blades dull to bright, shiny green | → 5 |
5. Leaf blades dull to shiny green; inflorescence axes many-branched, 1 mm diam.; branches usually 15-25 mm in immature phase. | subsp. manzanita |
5. Leaf blades shiny green; inflorescence axes few-branched, 1+ mm diam.; branches to 15 mm in immature phase. | subsp. laevigata |
CA
WildflowerSearch
iNaturalist
USDA Plants Database
