Arctostaphylos hookeri Wayside Manzanita

The 'Wayside'  cultivar of Arctostaphylos hookeri manzanita is an evergreen shrub, two feet high by six feet wide, with bright green leaves tinged with red. 'Wayside' manzanita is one of the few manzanitas that does well as an understory plant. It can be grown under oaks as well as pines. Although it does well in full sun along the coast, in hotter dryer interior areas it prefers the shade. This  manzanita does well in adobe soils if water doesn't stand for more than an hour. 'Wayside' manzanita grows better if it is sprinkled with some summer water unless in the summer fog belt.

'Wayside' manzanita is a dense mounding ground cover manzanita, its appearance is neat and tidy and is an excellent with dark green pines, brick patios or redwood decks. It did not like our nursery location at all because of the temperature extremes(like many of us), we finally found a spot under a Pinus remorata in part shade up out of the cold that 'Wayside' seems to like. It has grown there, under a blanket of pine needles, with no irrigation for, 25+ years. In places like San Luis Obispo, Monterey or Vista this manzanita is a real winner in full sun or part shade.

In places like Mojave or Boulevard forget it. In the full desert Wayside' looks like it was put in a toaster, and set to dark.