Arctostaphylos, Hill Manzanita 'Howard McMinn'

If you live in the Pacific Northwest, have clay soil, and want an upright manzanita, this is the one to get. The foliage on mine looks h...Read Moreealthier than that of most of my native plants. Like some of the other A. densiflora cultivars and hybrids, young plants will give you a quick burst of growth if given the right conditions. I planted a one-gallon individual that was roughly the size of my hand back in March. After six months (and once-a-week watering between June and August), it grew to over 2' x 2'. (It probably helped that I had a previously-established mycorrhizal grid in the soil.) Its tolerance of garden conditions is also pretty impressive. You can plant it a few feet from a lawn and it should do fine as long as you keep the summer water away from the crown and hold it to once a week. The 7" of rain that we received in late September of this year beat up my Ceanothus 'Skylark' badly, but my Howard McMinn didn't show a hint of dieback or leaf fungus. It's hardy to near 0 F.

If you can give it a spot with full-to-part sun, keep the summer water down to once a week, give it a fresh layer of bark mulch in the winter, and avoid fertilizer/compost/manure, Howard McMinn will likely work in your yard as well.

Manzanitas are oddly left out of most California native gardens, perhaps due to their reputation of being prissy with root disturbance, s...Read Morelow growth, and lack of tolerance for garden conditions. However they are probably the most interesting in terms of color, form, flowers, and toughness when established. They consistently look neat, tidy, and fresh even in the middle of Summer.

This is probably THE manzanita planted in commercial plantings, but that shouldn't stop you from trying it. It's said to be relatively quick growing for a manzanita, and it is absolutely floriferous in Spring. It's also the most forgiving of Manzanitas in garden settings, so if one wants to grow any of the manzanitas, this should be the one to start out with.

Beautiful, smooth, unmistakable bark which peals to reveal it's smooth texture many times over a year or season. Howard McMinn is the mos...Read Moret common of the Manzanitas and is easy to find at nurseries (not big name stores like Wal-Mart or K-Mart, but ones such as Navlets, Yardbirds or possibly Home Depot). Most manzanitas are native to California and have origin's from the Mediterranean. They are in the same family as the arbutus, which also has natives in California. They are easily related by the smoothness of their bark and it's distinctive pealing. A plant that is ignored in many Californian yards, as it's one of the lovliest to have around and show off.

Nice looking Manzanita and probably the easiest to adapt to a garden setting... a bit more water tolerant than most (Manzanitas don't lik...Read Moree to be watered much). Upright shrub- good for borders between neighbors. Flowers attractive to all sorts of nectar-loving animals. Nice red hard wood.