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By Elizabeth PetersenKinnikinnick, Arctostaphylos uva-

ursi, has lots to recommend it. The widely used evergreen ground-

cover is easy, effective and beautiful year round. It needs very little water or care, and it is largely ignored by deer.

But kinnikinnick is not the only Arctostaphylos.

Meet the other Arctostaphylos: the manzanitas. These uniquely West Coast shrubs number more than 50 spe-cies. Many naturally occurring hybrids can be seen growing in patches from Washington to Baja, most of them in California. A few familiar manzanita shrubs are native to Oregon.

Visitors to Oregon coastal towns are often greeted by sculptural specimens of hairy manzanita, A. columbiana, seen growing beneath Douglas firs. Their

upright evergreen leaves, held perpen-dicular to stems on colorful, twisted branches, are adapted to Oregon’s dry summers. In central Oregon, stands of native green leaf manzanita, A. patula, tolerate drought in the company of ponderosa pines.

Plants of both species produce clus-ters of small pink or white flowers that attract hummingbirds in very early spring.

But Oregon manzanitas have a reputation for being picky in garden culture — an issue confirmed by Greg Shepherd, co-owner of Xera Plants Inc. in Sherwood, Ore.

If planted in heavy soil or irrigated when the weather is warm, Shepherd said, fungal issues can arise with A. columbiana. A. patula does not accli-mate very well to lower elevations.

California manzanitas, on the other

hand, are proving to be hardy, garden-worthy plants for the Pacific Northwest, and the work of several Oregon plantsmen to discover the best ones is paying off.

Shepherd and others have been dis-covering and testing masses of manzani-tas for dry Pacific Northwest gardens.

“Once thought of as finicky in our region, it turns out that many, includ-ing those native to California, are ideally adapted to our naturally dry summers and are surprisingly tolerant of winter cold as well,” said Paul Bonine, co-owner of Xera Plants with Shepherd. “They can be used both as specimens and as tran-sitional shrubs to meld with neighboring wild areas.”

Shepherd has seen an increased interest in what he called “the iconic western look.”

“Manzanitas are easy if gardeners

Word is getting out on these sturdy natives, which are well adapted to the garden

Meet the manzanitas

Hairy manzanita (Arctostaphylos columbiana)

in habitat above the Columbia River.

Photo by Joshua Mccullough, PhytoPhoto

respect their environmental needs for less water,” he said. “In a garden where sum-mer watering is non-existent, they are among the easiest and most handsome shrubs one can grow.”

The word is out, and manzanitas are poised for a surge of popularity in gar-dens and commercial projects. Growers are building their stocks and bringing out more selections.

Xera Plants, a wholesale grower that concentrates on “climate adapted plants for gardeners in the Pacific Northwest,” has worked with hardy manzanita selec-tions for 10 years with mounting suc-cess. Plants that are “climate adapted” in Oregon like reliably dry summers, wet winters and an occasional cold spell, Shepherd explained.

The Xera catalog now lists some 28 selections, and gardeners can buy from Xera’s retail shop in Portland.

A bonanza of manzanitasNeil Bell, community horticultur-

ist for OSU Extension Service, set out to study California native manzanitas at the North Willamette Research and Extension Center. He and Bonine visited several botanic gardens in California to get cut-tings of hundreds of cultivars and spe-cies. Many of the selections were from Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden, and the study started in 2011. (More infor-mation about the study can be found at http://horticulture.oregonstate.edu/ content/arctostaphylos-manzanita-evaluation-western-oregon.)

Sean Hogan, owner of Cistus Nursery, has made more than 1,000 selections of manzanitas, mostly from California, over the last four years. He is searching for plants that will look good in the landscape. He currently has about 600 selections in trials, in forms ranging from useful groundcovers to small trees.

When selecting in the wild, Hogan’s highest priority after beauty is disease resistance. He has found that crosses of A. nevadensis and A. columbiana often resist fungal spotting. Crosses between A. nevadensis and A. glandulosa also show promise as small, evergreen shrubs and

trees. A. × media types are among the most water tolerant, he said.

Hogan also seeks a variety of forms, especially low plants that have potential as useful groundcovers and others that will perform as small trees in the landscape.

“I look for a plant with clean foliage that is growing among others that have spots,” Hogan said. “I look for plants that are growing in deeper shade or in heavier soil than others.”

In addition to several introductions already, Hogan expects to bring out about a dozen more next year. Retail cus-tomers can shop online (www.cistus.com) or at the nursery on Sauvie Island.

Hogan is using manzanitas on large-scale commercial projects too.

In the Bay Area, for instance, he is designing the transformation of a 150-acre corporate campus into a native chaparral. For this project, Hogan has been sourcing tens of thousands of manzanitas.

Part of the chaparral plant commu-nity, manzanitas combine beautifully with ceanothus, grasses and other plants that are naturally adapted to mild, wet winters and dry summers.

Recommendations from Xera PlantsFrom a naturally occurring

cross from Sonoma County, Calif.,

The eye-catching, tree-sized Austin Griffiths manzanita (A. × ‘Austin Griffiths’, photographed at Xera Plants) does very well in the Pacific Northwest, surviving temperatures down to 5 F, and even lower. The flowers open from January through April, even surviving freezes. Photo by curt kiPP

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Arctostaphylos × densiflora ‘Howard McMinn’ (Zone 7a; 0–5 F) is a hand-some, 6-by-6-foot shrub. It is “foolproof with a classic look,” Shepherd said. Among the most adaptable to land-scapes, it takes irrigation better than others. Plants display striking red, shiny bark; dark, glossy leaves; and 6 weeks of a profuse display of pink flowers. Maroon berries follow in summer. Tip prune in summer to limit size and shape. Shepherd has observed slight leaf tip damage at 0 F.

Arctostaphylos × ‘Sunset’ (Zone 7a; 0–5 F) lends a more formal look. A handsome, densely branched shrub, it can be clipped into a 3-foot hedge and/or severely pruned to limit size or to shape. Without shaping, it becomes wider than tall in time. Leaves are edged with small white hairs, and small off-white winter flowers are followed by clusters of small berries. Easy, cold hardy and a great transitional shrub between more and less formal areas.

According to Shepherd, the very best large tree-type manzanita for Pacific Northwest gardens is Arctostaphylos × ‘Austin Griffiths’ (Zone 7a; 0–5 F). It is a fast grower to 12 feet tall and 8 feet wide. Pearl pink flowers open early, often in January, and continue into April, even through freezes. Plants produce showy, burnt-orange berries and smooth, mahog-any-black bark with twisting branches. “Long lived with neglect,” Shepherd said.

From Sonoma County, Calif., Arctostaphylos bakeri (syn. stanfordi-ana) ‘Louis Edmonds’ (Zone 7a; 0–5 F) is a picturesque manzanita that looks good year round. Its gray-green, nearly circular leaves are held perpendicular to the stems. It has a tidy, upright habit, smooth, burgundy/purple bark, a late bloom (March to May) of flowers that open dark pink and fade to pearl pink, and small russet-red apple-shaped fruits. It grows to 6 feet tall by 4 feet wide in 5 years.

Arctostaphylos × densiflora ‘Sentinel’ (Zone 7a; 0–5 F) is an easy, adaptable selection from Sonoma, Calif. This man-zanita has leaves covered with downy fur that produces a softer look. Deep pink flowers in late winter to early

spring are followed by mahogany ber-ries. Stems and bark are smooth dark orange. It grows to 5 feet tall and wide in 5 years. Tip pruning at an early age improves density and looks.

Tree-like Arctostaphylos × densiflora ‘Harmony’ (Zone 7a; 0–5 F), a selection of Sonoma Manzanita, makes a wonder-ful specimen. Taller and more tree-like than Howard McMinn, its glossy green leaves are the largest on any A. densiflo-ra type. It grows to 7 feet tall and 5 feet wide in time. Clusters of pink flowers appear in late winter.

A Xera Plants introduction, Arctostaphylos × media ‘Martha Ewan’ (Zone 7a; 0–5 F) is a naturally occurring hybrid found near the beach town of Manzanita. Low (30 inches) and wide (5 feet) with dense foliage, the “extremely dapper” evergreen shrub has gray-tinged leaves with a handsome paddle shape. Early spring flowers are followed by very large, showy red berries. It is excel-lent for hillsides or as a weed blocking ground cover. Fertilize in spring.

Recommendations from CistusArctostaphylos ‘Lolo’ is a Cistus

introduction from the top of Lolo Pass on the northeast shoulder of Oregon’s Mt. Hood. This natural hybrid between A. nevadensis and A. columbiana forms a mounding shrub to 2 feet tall and 4 feet wide. Gray-green leaves are held on burgundy-tinted stems and light pink

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Tips for growing manzanitas

Plant in full sun or part shade in native mineral soils with good drainage.

Provide good air circulation. Don’t provide supplemental water,

especially in warm weather. Going dry in summer helps plants harden off for winter.

Don’t apply compost and don’t overdo the pruning. A little tip pruning will help young manzanitas bulk up. Pruning up will expose the exquisite bark and form.

Use coarse bark mulch to keep mud from splashing on the leaves.

For an acidic amendment, use cotton-seed meal, which is mellow and won’t burn.

flowers appear in winter and spring. It spills if placed on a bank, wall or con-tainer. Frost hardy in USDA Zone 7, pos-sibly even 6.

Another Cistus introduction, Arctostaphylos hookeri SBH 7471, was selected in the Huckleberry Hill area near Carmel, Calif., in a habitat of tiny, round-leaved, mat-like shubs. Only 4 to 6 inches tall and 2 feet wide, it has pointy leaves that get rounder as they mature. White to pearly pink flowers appear in mid-winter. Tolerant of some summer water in sun to dappled shade in most soils. Frost hardy to 0 F, USDA Zone 8, possibly zone 7.

“Of all our recent selections, this is among the top,” Hogan said of Arctostaphylos manzanita ‘Upstanding’, a stunning Cistus introduction from Northern Lake County, Calif. A particu-larly large form to 18 or 20 feet, but easily maintained at 4 to 5 feet, it has an upright habit, red stems and green leaves slightly tinted mauve. Muscular branches boast orange-red bark, and very pale pink flowers develop from the end of December through February. An outstanding addition to the native scene in full sun to lightly dappled shade with good air circulation. It’s more tolerant of some summer garden water than most manzanitas, but don’t overdo it, Hogan said. Frost hardy in USDA Zone 7.

Also from Cistus, A. glandulosa ‘Rogue Gem’ is one of a series of A. glandulosa from the reaches above Oregon’s Rogue River canyon. This gem becomes a multi-stemmed mound, 3 feet tall by 6 feet wide in time. It boasts deep chocolate-brown stems, glossy green leaves, and very pale pink flowers from late winter through late spring.

Since it resprouts from a basal burl, it can be cut back if needed. It is toler-ant of some summer irrigation. Frost hardy in USDA Zone 7.

Elizabeth Petersen writes for the garden industry and teaches SAT/ACT test prep at www.satpreppdx.com. She can be reached at gardenwrite@comcast.net or satpreppdx@comcast.net.

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