Blueciana Santa Lucia Manzanita

Blueciana Santa Lucia Manzanita

An exceptionally blue form of Arctostaphylos luciana, so blue in fact that we had to call it Blueciana. While all forms of this species have a wonderful blue grey coloring to their leaves, we found this one particularly striking. In the wild it had a fairly compact habit and has proven to be exceedingly adaptable to garden conditions if provided good drainage and minimal summer water.

Arctostaphylos luciana is a manzanita species native to the Santa Lucia Mountains just outside of San Luis Obispo at elevations up to around 2,000 feet. It is listed on the California Native Plant Society’s inventory of rare and endangered species and is threatened due to its small natural range, surrounding area and some of its habitat being mostly on private land, and climate change. We find this species to be one of the most beautiful and adaptable of any manzanita and have enjoyed selecting some interesting new cultivars from a friend’s ranch where we’ve found many interesting forms.

Find more Manzanitas here!

Latin Name: Arctostaphylos luciana (cv. 8)
Site and Soil: Well draining unamended soils in full sun
Hardiness: Hardy to at least 10 F.
Size at Maturity: ~6′ x 6′
Bloom Time: Late winter into spring
Pests & Diseases: None that we have observed
USDA Zone: 8a