Las Pilitas Nursery | Shop

Re-opening October!

Native Plants Nature of California Native gardens Native Plant Pictures Selected Native Plants Garden DIY Birds and the Bees.

Ceanothus Manzanitas Monkeys Penstemons Currants and Gooseberries Sage Salvias Sexy flowers

Manzanita types from Central California

These are manzanita species that are found from south of San Jose to north of Tejon or Gaviota pass . This includes the central and southern Sierras, Santa Cruz to Santa Ynez. Just because you live in this area doesn't mean you can grow all these. What kind of soil do you have (clay, sand )? Are you near the coast or in the desert (high rainfall, low rainfall)? It is fairly easy to raise rainfall, just water. If you have high rainfall though, you are stuck with it. Keep these things in mind when picking your Manzanita plant.

These species are just a place to start depending on your exact location you may be able to grow manzanitas from northern and southern California as well!

Don't forget Manzanita plants hate drip irrigation and soil amendments!

An Arctostaphylos glauca, Big Berry Manzanita, kept as a specimen. This manzanita covered large areas of Central and Southern California. - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos glauca, Big Berry Manzanita is great for a bird garden and a butterfly garden.

An old picture of Arctostaphylos canescens. - grid24_12

Hoary Manzanita slowly grows into a 4 ft. across and 2 ft. high gray mound.

Arctostaphylos crustacea, Brittleleaf Manzanita - grid24_12

Brittleleaf Manzanita Brittleleaf Manzanita is a 3-4ft high shrub with light-green leaves, reddish stems and pink flowers. It is found in the Chaparral plant community.

Arctostapyhlos cruzensis doing fine in a Cambria Garden. - grid24_12

Arroyo de la Cruz Manzanita is a little shrub that grows to 1-2' tall and 4-5' in width.

Flowers and leaves of Arctostaphylos cushingiana - grid24_12

Mound Manzanita, Arctostaphylos cushingiana

Arctostaphylos edmundsii, Big Sur Manzanita - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos edmundsii Big Sur Manzanita makes a small dark green mound.

Arctostaphylos edmundsii, Carmel Sur Manzanita makes a cute little ground cover. - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos edmundsii Carmel Sur Manzanita makes a nice little groundcover.

Danville manzanita and a boulder - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos edmundsii Danville Manzanita is a garden tolerant manzanita makes a nice small groundcover.

Here is a 7 or 8 year old Arctostaphylos crustacea subsp. eastwoodiana with no extra water. It grows to about 30 inches high and 5 foot wide. - grid24_12

Harris Grade manzanita is an interesting mounding manzanita that grows east of Lompoc.

Arctostaphylos glandulosa campbelliae, I swear all the glandulosas look the same. - grid24_12

Eastwood Manzanita is a medium sized Manzanita.

Arctostaphylos glandulosa zacaensis, San Marcos Manzanita - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos glandulosa zacaensis San Marcos Manzanita most of the glandulosa manzanitas are similar.

Big Berry Manzanita. can grow into a small tree.

Monterey Carpet manzanita flowers. - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos hookeri Monterey Carpet manzanita is a foot by four foot evergreen shrub.

Arctostaphylos hookeri Wayside Manzanita

Arctostaphylos hooveri Hoovers Manzanita grwoing on top of the Big Sur mountains. - grid24_12

Hoovers Manzanita is an evergray 10' X `6' bush

Arctostaphylos luciana, Adelaide manzanita in flower - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos luciana, Adelaide Manzanita is a rare, evergreen shrub, 3' by 6' with 1" white leaves and red bark.

Dog Face Butterfly on Arctostaphylos mariposa, Mariposa Manzanita - grid24_12

Mariposa Manzanita is a 6 ft. gray shrub with pink flowers.

Morro Bay Manzanita, Arctostaphylos morroensis. Even though it grows in Los Osos - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos morroensis grows about 8 ft. in beach sand near Los Osos.

Arctostaphylos obispoensis San Luis Obispo Manzanita with an Anna Hummingbird - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos obispoensis, San Luis Obispo Manzanita grows to about 6 ft. tall in serpentine soils.

Arctostaphylos obispoensis, Obispo Manzanita - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos osoensis SLO Valley Manzanita

Paradise manzanita can have a great deal of color. - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos pajaroensis Paradise Manzanita has great leaf and flower color on a 3 ft. tall bush.

Arctostaphylos parryana grows in the Transverse ranges at 5000-7000 ft. - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos parryana Snow Lodge Manzanita is a knee high groundcover.

Arctostaphylos patula, Greenleaf Manzanita at a higher elevation in the Sierras. When the get 3-5 meters of snow on them they lay low. - grid24_12

Greenleaf Manzanita grows into a medium sized bush in lower elevations.

Arctostaphylos pechoensis, Pecho manzanita, showing the clasping leaves. - grid24_12

Pecho Manzanita look prehistoric with the bell flowers gangling from the gray foliage.

Santa margarita or Atascadero manzanita - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos pilosula grows into a 6 foot gray shrub with white flowers. It lives in Santa Margarita and Atascadero.

Arctostaphylos pumula, Sandmat Manzanita - grid24_12

Dune Manzanita is a shrub of the dunes. . It can be used as a groundcover.

Arctostaphylos purissima

Arctostaphylos purissima Petite Margarita is a delicate little bush about 2 foot tall.

Here are some flowers of Arctostaphylos rudis, Shag bark manzanita - grid24_12

ShagBark Manzanita grows in beach sand from Arroyo Grande to Lompoc.

Arctostaphylos silvicola, Ghostly Manzanita with a beefly. This manzanita is native north of Santa Cruz. - grid24_12

Santa Cruz Manzanita grows into a sprawling gray shrub. Moon white in the moon light.

Arctostaphylos tomentosa - woolly leaf manzanita - grid24_12

Arctostaphylos tomentosa grows into a 6 ft. bush.

White Leaf manzanita, Arctostaphylos viscida, with flowers. notice the nectar robbing bees have eaten a hole into each flower. - grid24_12

Whiteleaf manzanita grows along the western base of the Sierras.

Arctostaphylos wellsii, Well's manzanita - grid24_12

Wells Manzanita or Pismo Manzanita Grows from Availa to south of Pismo Beach.

Also keep these plants have been there a long time and are really, really easy if you think before you plant.

The normal reaction to first timers seeing a native garden done with manzanitas is disbelief. They can't believe you're not watering, they can't believe there's almost no weeding, and they can't believe how good it looks.

Manzanita types from Central California

Don't forget Manzanita plants hate drip irrigation and soil amendments!

Northern California Manzanita

Southern California Manzanita

Hybrid California Manzanita