Arctostaphylos Adans.: manzanita

Abstract

The shrub genus Arctostaphylos, or manzanita, comprises about 50 species, 90% of which are endemic to California and adjacent areas (Munz and Keck 1959). Three species - greenleaf manzanita, Mexican manzanita, and rosybract manzanita - are widely distributed in the southwestern United States and Mexico. One species - bearberry or kinnickinnick - is circumboreal in distribution (table 1). The manzanita habit varies from mat-forming (bearberry) to nearly arborescent (bigberry manzanita). About a quarter of the species have subterranean burls that generate new sprouts both after fire and throughout the long life of the plant (Keeley 1992; Wells 1969). The leaves of manzanitas are leathery, entire, and evergreen. They are major components of chaparral and are also common understory species in montane coniferous forest types, especially ponderosa (Pinus ponderosa Dougl. ex Laws.) and Jeffrey (P. jeffreyi Grev. & Balf.) pines. They are most abundant in the fire-prone vegetation of regions with dry summers.

Parent Publication

• The Woody Plant Seed Manual

Citation

Meyer, Susan E. 2008. Arctostaphylos Adans.: manzanita. In: Bonner, Franklin T.; Karrfalt, Robert P., eds. The Woody Plant Seed Manual. Agric. Handbook No. 727. Washington, DC. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. p. 266-270.