Arctostaphylos patula
| Arctostaphylos patula | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 6 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-6.5 |
| Evergreen Self Pollinated | |
| Height: | 7' |
| Width: | 7' |
| Blooms: | Early Spring-Late Spring |
| Open Woods Forest | |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
 | |
Arctostaphylos patula (common name: greenleaf 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. The cuttings are very slow and can take a year to root[4][5]. This species is very difficult from cuttings[6].
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[7][1][6][2] but plants produce less fruit when they are grown in the shade[2]. Prefers a soil that is dry in the summer[8]. Plants are not very wind-firm[1].
Plants are hardy to about -10°c[8]. This species was growing well at Chelsea Physic garden after the harsh winter of 1985/86, showing no signs of damage[1].
Highly fire resistant[9], it can regenerate after a forest fire from a mallee-like base[6][8]. Plants self-layer in nature[9].
A very ornamental plant[4], it grows well in Britain[7].
Plants resent root disturbance and should be placed in their final positions as soon as possible[1][3].
Range: South-western N. America.
Habitat: Open coniferous forests[7][1].
Edibility: Fruit - raw or cooked[7][10][11][12]. The fully ripe fruit is pleasantly acid with a flavour resembling green apples[13]. It can be dried, ground into a powder then used in making cakes etc[14]. The fruit can also be used for making jelly and cider[13]. The fruit is about 8 - 10mm in diameter[2].
Seed - ground into a powder and added to soups etc[15]. 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: The leaves are astringent[10]. They have been used in the treatment of VD[14]. They are also used as a poultice on burns, cuts etc[14].
Usage: A yellowish-brown dye is obtained from the leaves, it does not require a mordant[16].
Pollinators: Bees, self
Soil: Can grow in light and medium soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
In Leaf: Evergreen
Seed Ripens: Late Summer-Mid Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 Bean, William. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Murray, 1981.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 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.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 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 6.2 Taylor, Jane. The Milder Garden. Dent, 1990.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Simmons, Alan. Growing Unusual Fruit. David and Charles, 1972.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Phillips, Roger and Martyn Rix. Shrubs. Pan Books, 1989.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Arnberger, Leslie. Flowers of the Southwest Mountains. Southwestern Monuments, 1968.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Sweet, Muriel. Common Edible and Useful Plants of the West. Naturegraph Co, 1962.
- ↑ 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.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Moerman, Daniel. Native American Ethnobotany. Timber Press, 1998.
- ↑ Balls, Edward. Early Uses of Californian Plants. University of California Press, 1975.
- ↑ Grae, Ida. Nature's Colors. MacMillan Publishing, 1974.