Arctostaphylos manzanita - Common Manzanita

Description

An umbrella shaped tree from 6' - 20' tall, spreading 4' - 10'. Its crooked picturesque branching habit with purplish red bark sets off the bright green to blue green, broadly oval leaves. Its flowers are white, held in open, drooping clusters, these give rise to white fruit that turns deep red. A native to the inner Coast Ranges and Sierra Nevada foothills this shrub is widely adapted, but does best in northern California locations. The berries were a primary food source for the Cahuilla Indians who also made them into cider.