Genus

Arctostaphylos

The Arctostaphylos genus in the Plotwright catalog - 2 species: Bearberry (kinnikinnick), Common manzanita. Open any for hardiness, native range, wildlife value, and growing guidance.
Filters
Bearberry (Arctostaphylos uva-ursi) - a prostrate evergreen mat spreading over boulders, studded with small glossy leaves and bright red berries.
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi
Bearberry (kinnikinnick)
A circumboreal evergreen groundcover with small white-pink urn-shaped flowers, glossy leathery leaves, and bright-red bear-edible berries. One of the most reliable native evergreen groundcovers for cold sandy sites; widely used in northern landscapes for slope stabilization + low-maintenance native plantings.
Shrub
Full sun / Part shade
Low water
Zones 3a-7b
Climate: moderate
Filler
Structure
Common manzanita (Arctostaphylos manzanita) - a mature multi-trunked shrub against open sky, its muscular red-brown trunks branching up into a rounded crown of grey-green evergreen foliage.
Arctostaphylos manzanita
Common manzanita
An evergreen California chaparral shrub famous for its smooth, sinuous, red-orange bark and crooked branches - "manzanita" means "little apple" for the small reddish berries. Bright green, broadly ovate leaves stand year-round above the polished trunks, and nodding white-to-pink urn-shaped flowers open from February into April. A dry-slope native of the Coast Ranges and Sierra Nevada foothills that asks for almost no summer water once established.
Shrub
Full sun / Part shade
Low water
Zones 8a-10b
Climate: narrow
Structure
Focal point