Description

The brittle leaf manzanita is the most common manzanita in the coastal mountains from the SF Bay Area to Santa Barbara County. In some places the stands are quite large. Many - probably most - of the manzanita species in California grow within this range. Hybridization with some of these species perhaps explains why brittle leaf manzanita has so many subspecies. This subspecies grows in the many ranges of Santa Barbara County. It is especially common in the Harris Grade area, where this selection was made by Bert Wilson, founder of Las Pilitas Nursery. Compared to other forms of A. crustacea, it is lower and greener. It is also tolerant of hot, dry conditions. A manzanita that is low growing and tolerant of full inland sun is a rare thing.