Arctostaphylos nevadensis
| Arctostaphylos nevadensis | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 6 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-6.5 |
| Evergreen Self Pollinated | |
| Height: | 0.3' |
| Width: | 3' |
| Speed: | Moderate |
| Blooms: | Mid Spring-Late Spring |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Arctostaphylos nevadensis (common name: pine-mat manzanita)
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[1][2]. The seed usually germinates in 2 - 3 months at 15°c[3]. 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. Takes one year[4][5].
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[2].
Cultivation: Requires a deep moist well-drained light or medium lime-free loam in sun or semi-shade but plants produce less fruit when grown in the shade[2]. Prefers a position in full sun[1]. Grows well in shade[6]. Plants at Kew were growing very well in a shady position on a NE slope in 1990[K]. Grows well in a sandy seashore garden[7].
This species is closely related to A. uva-ursi[1][8].
Plants resent root disturbance and should be placed in their final positions as soon as possible[3].
Range: South-western N. America - California.
Habitat: Montane areas[8].
Edibility: Seed - ground into a powder and added to soups etc[9]. 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].
Fruit[9][10][11]. The fruit can be eaten fresh or dried and stored for later use[12]. It can also be pulverised and made into a drink[12].
Medicinal: The leaves are used in the treatment of diarrhoea[12].
The whole plant is used as an antidote for poisoning by poison oak, Toxicodendron diversiloba[12]. It was probably applied externally to the skin[K].
Usage: A yellowish-brown dye is obtained from the leaves, it does not require a mordant[13].
A good ground-cover plant for steep sandy banks[6][2]. A carpeting plant, growing quite rapidly and rooting as it spreads[7].
Pollinators: Bees, self
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Wind: Tolerates maritime wind exposure
In Leaf: Evergreen
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Also Known As: A. parviflora. Uva-ursi nevadensis.
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Bean, William. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Murray, 1981.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Rice, Graham. Growing from Seed Volume 2. Thompson and Morgan, 1988.
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ Sheat, Wilfrid. Propagation of Trees, Shrubs and Conifers. St Martin, 1948.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Knight, F. P.. Plants for Shade. Royal Horticultural Society, 1980.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Thomas, Graham. Plants for Ground Cover. Everyman, 1990.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Hitchcock, Leo. Vascular Plants of the Pacific Northwest. University of Washington Press, 1955.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Balls, Edward. Early Uses of Californian Plants. University of California Press, 1975.
- ↑ Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
- ↑ Yanovsky, Elias. Food Plants of the North American Indians Publication 237. US Department of Agriculture.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.
- ↑ Grae, Ida. Nature's Colors. MacMillan Publishing, 1974.