• GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS
• RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM
• REGENERATION PROCESSES
• SITE CHARACTERISTICS
• SUCCESSIONAL STATUS
• SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT

GENERAL BOTANICAL CHARACTERISTICS:

Mariposa manzanita is an erect native perennial shrub. On favorable sites it can become treelike, attaining heights in excess of 20 feet (6 m) and developing a single short trunk. On most sites, however, it ranges from 6 to 12 feet (2-4 m) tall. Mature limbs are long and crooked with smooth, dark reddish-brown bark, which peels irregularly in thin flakes. The young twigs are pale green with downy hairs. The white or pale pink flowers occur in drooping open clusters. The fruit is a small berrylike drupe, which persists on the shrub year-round. In early summer it is white, but in late summer it turns a deep red. The nutlets are irregularly coalesced or separate. Mariposa manzanita lacks a lignotuber. [7,23,28,30,32,35].

RAUNKIAER LIFE FORM:

Phanerophyte

REGENERATION PROCESSES:

Sexual: Mariposa manzanita reproduces by seed. The seeds have an extremely thick endocarp and will not germinate unless scarified. Seed coat scarification may occur naturally by the high temperatures associated with fire, mechanically by soil disturbances, such as those associated with logging activities, or chemically [3,29]. Mariposa manzanita seeds are produced almost every year; in some years seed production is heavier than in others. Animals are the primary mode of seed dispersal [5].

Vegetative: Mariposa manzanita probably has the ability to regenerate vegetatively by layering, as most species of manzanita have this ability. Mariposa manzanita does not sprout from belowground tissue because it lacks a basal burl [35].

SITE CHARACTERISTICS:

Mariposa manzanita is typically found on dry, well-drained, sunny sites [35]. It occurs on open hillsides and along the margins of oak and conifer woodlands [30].

Soil: Mariposa manzanita is tolerant of a wide variety of soils but typically occurs on those that are dry and well drained. In California, Mariposa manzanita has been found on soils in the Josephine, Hugo, and Sobrante series [9].

Climate: Mariposa manzanita commonly occurs in a Mediterranean climate type characterized by warm, dry summers and rainy winters [27].

Elevation: Mariposa manzanita occurs in the foothills and montane regions of the Sierra Nevada and the northern Coast Ranges of California at elevations ranging from 250 to 6,500 feet (76-1,981 m) [18,23,28]. Specific elevational ranges by location follow:

North Coast Ranges 3,000 to 6,000 feet (914-1829 m)
inner North Coast Ranges 250 to 4,000 feet (76-1219 m)
northern Sierra Nevada 2,000 to 4,000 feet (610-1219 m)
southern Sierra Nevada 3,000 to 6,500 feet (914-1981 m)

SUCCESSIONAL STATUS:

Mariposa manzanita-dominated communities have been variously referred to as climax, pyric climax, and transitional vegetation [16,29].

Mariposa manzanita displays characteristics common to shade intolerant pioneer species. It is often first plant to establish after fire on open sites with residual seed stock in the soil. Emerging seedlings died as a result of competition from herbaceous vegetation at a California location [5].

SEASONAL DEVELOPMENT:

Mariposa manzanita typically flowers from February to April over most of its range [23,28] but blooms as early as Christmas in some locations [7]. The fruits appear in early summer, ripen in the fall, and usually persist year-round [23,28]. Most chaparral species experience the greatest amount of growth in May and June. Growth ceases in mid-July because of high air temperatures and low soil moisture [19].

Related categories for SPECIES: Arctostaphylos manzanita | Parry Manzanita