Arctostaphylos insularis
Encyclopedia
Arctostaphylos insularis, with the common name Island manzanita, is a species of manzanita
. It is endemic to Santa Cruz Island
, one of the Channel Islands of California
.
reaching over two meters tall and known to exceed five meters in height. It has waxy, reddish bark and the smaller twigs sometimes have bristly glandular hairs. The leaves are shiny green and smooth, generally oval in shape and slightly convex, and up to about 4.5 centimeters long. The shrub blooms in many dense clustered inflorescence
s of urn-shaped flowers. The fruit is an orange-brown drupe
up to 1.5 centimeters wide.
Arctostaphylos
Arctostaphylos is a genus of plants comprised by the manzanitas and bearberries. They are shrubs or small trees.There are about 60 species of Arctostaphylos, ranging from ground-hugging arctic, coastal, and mountain species to small trees up to 6 m tall. Most are evergreen , with small oval...
. It is endemic to Santa Cruz Island
Santa Cruz Island
Santa Cruz Island was the largest privately owned island off the continental United States, but is currently part-owned by the National Park service . The island, located off the coast of California, is long and from wide...
, one of the Channel Islands of California
Channel Islands of California
The Channel Islands of California are a chain of eight islands located in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Southern California along the Santa Barbara Channel in the United States of America...
.
Description
Arctostaphylos insularis is a large, spreading shrubShrub
A shrub or bush is distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and shorter height, usually under 5–6 m tall. A large number of plants may become either shrubs or trees, depending on the growing conditions they experience...
reaching over two meters tall and known to exceed five meters in height. It has waxy, reddish bark and the smaller twigs sometimes have bristly glandular hairs. The leaves are shiny green and smooth, generally oval in shape and slightly convex, and up to about 4.5 centimeters long. The shrub blooms in many dense clustered inflorescence
Inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Strictly, it is the part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed and which is accordingly modified...
s of urn-shaped flowers. The fruit is an orange-brown drupe
Drupe
In botany, a drupe is a fruit in which an outer fleshy part surrounds a shell of hardened endocarp with a seed inside. These fruits develop from a single carpel, and mostly from flowers with superior ovaries...
up to 1.5 centimeters wide.
See also
- California chaparral and woodlandsCalifornia chaparral and woodlandsThe California chaparral and woodlands is a terrestrial ecoregion of lower northern, central, and southern California and northwestern Baja California , located on the west coast of North America...
- California coastal sage and chaparral ecoregionCalifornia coastal sage and chaparral ecoregionThe California coastal sage and chaparral, a sub-ecoregion of the California chaparral and woodlands ecoregion, is found in southwestern California and northwestern Baja California in Mexico.-Location:...