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Arctostaphylos patula

Common name:	Greenleaf Manzanita	Family:	Ericaceae
Author:	Greene.	Botanical references:	11, 60, 200
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	South-western N. America.
Habitat:	Open coniferous forests[3, 11].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	3	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	A. acutifolia[B,P] A. parryana var. pinetorum[B,P] A. patula ssp. platyphylla[B,P] A. patula var. coalescens[B,P]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Green Manzanita [DEN1], Green-leaf Manzanita [B], Greenleaf Manzanita [P,L,FEIS],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	patula = spreading;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Ericales. Heath family

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen shrub growing to 2m by 2m . It is hardy to zone 6. It is in leaf all year, in flower from March to May, and the seeds ripen from August to October. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Bees. The plant is self-fertile. We rate it 3/5 for edibility and 1/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid soils and can grow in very acid soil. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade.

Edible Uses

Fruit; Seed.

Fruit - raw or cooked[3, 94, 105, 161]. The fully ripe fruit is pleasantly acid with a flavour resembling green apples[183]. It can be dried, ground into a powder then used in making cakes etc[257]. The fruit can also be used for making jelly and cider[183]. The fruit is about 8 - 10mm in diameter[200].
Seed - ground into a powder and added to soups etc[92]. The seed is very small and would be difficult to separate from the fruit. It would be easier to dry the whole fruit, grind this into a powder and use it in soups etc[K].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Astringent; Poultice; VD.

The leaves are astringent[94]. They have been used in the treatment of VD[257]. They are also used as a poultice on burns, cuts etc[257].

Other Uses

Dye.

A yellowish-brown dye is obtained from the leaves, it does not require a mordant[168].

Cultivation details

Requires a deep moist well-drained light or medium lime-free loam in sun or semi-shade[3, 11, 166, 200] but plants produce less fruit when they are grown in the shade[200]. Prefers a soil that is dry in the summer[184]. Plants are not very wind-firm[11].
Plants are hardy to about -10°c[184]. This species was growing well at Chelsea Physic garden after the harsh winter of 1985/86, showing no signs of damage[11].
Highly fire resistant[155], it can regenerate after a forest fire from a mallee-like base[166, 184]. Plants self-layer in nature[155].
A very ornamental plant[1], it grows well in Britain[3].
Plants resent root disturbance and should be placed in their final positions as soon as possible[11, 134].

Propagation

Seed - best sown in a greenhouse as soon as it is ripe. Pre-soak dried seed in boiling water for 10 - 20 seconds or burn some straw on top of them and then stratify at 2 - 5°c for 2 months[11, 200]. The seed usually germinates in 2 - 3 months at 15°c[134]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in a cold frame or greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant out in late spring or early summer.
Cuttings of side shoots of the current season's growth, 5 - 8cm with a heel, August to December in a frame. The cuttings are very slow and can take a year to root[1, 78]. This species is very difficult from cuttings[166].
Division in early spring. Take care because the plant resents root disturbance. Pot the divisions up and keep them in a lightly shaded position in a cold frame or greenhouse until they are growing away actively.
Layering in spring[200].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[V] Images from the Vascular Plant Image Gallery of the Texas A&M Bioinformatics Working Group.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[C] Taxon data. from the CalFlora database.
Images from the CalPhoto database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[DEN] Data _ Photos (Good Identification info) from the Virginia Tech's Dendrology Deptarments' Tree Fact Sheets.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database
[FEIS] Data (Uses, Ecology, Fire Effects) from the USDA Forestry Service Fire Effects Information System.

References for the family Ericaceae.

[CHINA] Draft Data for parts of family Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[3] Simmons. A. E. Growing Unusual Fruit. David and Charles 1972 ISBN 0-7153-5531-7
A very readable book with information on about 100 species that can be grown in Britain (some in greenhouses) and details on how to grow and use them.

[11] Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray 1981
A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.

[60] Hitchcock. C. L. Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press 1955
A standard flora for Western N. America with lots of information on habitat etc. Five large volumes, it is not for the casual reader.

[78] Sheat. W. G. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. MacMillan and Co 1948
A bit dated but a good book on propagation techniques with specific details for a wide range of plants.

[92] Balls. E. K. Early Uses of Californian Plants. University of California Press 1975 ISBN 0-520-00072-2
A nice readable book.

[94] Sweet. M. Common Edible and Useful Plants of the West. Naturegraph Co. 1962 ISBN 0-911010-54-8
Useful wild plants in Western N. America. A pocket guide.

[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.

[134] Rice. G. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 2. Thompson and Morgan. 1988
Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation. An interesting article on Ensete ventricosum.

[155] Arnberger. L. P. Flowers of the Southwest Mountains. Southwestern Monuments Ass. 1968
A lovely little pocket guide to wild plants in the southern Rockies of America.

[161] Yanovsky. E. Food Plants of the N. American Indians. Publication no. 237. U.S. Depf of Agriculture.
A comprehensive but very terse guide. Not for the casual reader.

[166] Taylor. J. The Milder Garden. Dent 1990
A good book on plants that you didn't know could be grown outdoors in Britain.

[168] Grae. I. Nature's Colors - Dyes from Plants. MacMillan Publishing Co. New York. 1974 ISBN 0-02-544950-8
A very good and readable book on dyeing.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[184] Phillips. R. & Rix. M. Shrubs. Pan Books 1989 ISBN 0-330-30258-2
Excellent photographs and a terse description of 1900 species and cultivars.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

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