Arctostaphylos pringlei

Arctostaphylos pringlei Parry

by Lauren Harter, Native Plants of Arizona 2007

Common names: Pringle Manzanita (1), Pinkbract Manzanita (2)

Family: Ericaceae (1)

Synonymy:

Etymology: Arctostaphylos from Greek meaning bear berries (3). The specific epithet is honorific for Cyrus G. Pringle, short phrase bio here with life dates in parentheses??? (4).

Identification

Growth form: 4-6 foot shrub or small tree, sometimes in dense thickets (2).
Roots:

Stem: Erect (3). Smooth, mahogany-colored bark (2) young stems covered with glandular hairs (3).

Leaves: Evergreen (3). Simple, alternate, ovate, with entire margins, gray-green (2).

Inflorescence/flowers: Clustered, bell-shaped, white to pinkish flowers (2) with superior ovary. Finely glandular-bristly (3).

Fruit: Red (2), sticky berry-like drupe (3).

Similar species: Distinguished from Arctostaphylos pungens by sticky, glandular-bristly young stems, leaves, flowers and fruits (3).

Ecology

Life history: Perennial tree or shrub (1)

Native/introduced: Native (1)

Photosynthetic pathway:

Phenology: February through April (2)

Distribution: Found on dry mountain slopes in chaparral and open pine forest at 4000 – 7900 feet (2, 5). In Arizona, present in Mohave, Coconino, Yavapai, Gila, Graham, Maricopa, Pima, and Cochise counties. Also found in Utah, Nevada and California (1).

Uses

The Navajo use the berries to make a beverage or jelly or simply eat them raw. The seeds are ground into porridge (6).

References

1. USDA, NRCS. 2007. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov, 30 October 2007). National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA.

2. Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. 2007. Native Plant Information Network (http://www.wildflower.org, 30 October 2007). University of Texas, Austin, TX 78739 USA.

3. The Jepson Herbarium. 2007. The Jepson Flora Project (http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/jepson_flora_project.html, 30 October 2007). University of California, Berkeley.

4. The Pringle Herbarium (http://www.uvm.edu/~plantbio/pringle, 30 October 2007). University of Vermont.

5. Calflora. 2007. The Calflora Database (http://www.calflora.org, 30 October 2007). Berkeley, CA.

6. Moerman, D. 2003. Native American Ethnobotany Database (http://herb.umd.umich.edu, 30 October 2007). University of Michigan, Dearborn, MI 48198 USA.

Arctostaphylos pringlei Parry by Lauren Harter, Native Plants of Arizona 2007 Common names: Pringle Manzanita (1), Pinkbract Manzanita (2) Family: Ericaceae (1) Synonymy: Etymology: Arctostaphylos from Greek meaning bear berries (3). The specific epithet is honorific for Cyrus G. Pringle, short phrase bio here with life dates in parentheses??? (4). Identification Growth form: 4-6 foot shrub or small tree, sometimes in dense thickets (2). Roots: Stem: Erect (3). Smooth, mahogany-colored bark (2) young stems covered with glandular hairs (3). Leaves: Evergreen (3). Simple, alternate, ovate, with entire margins, gray-green (2). Inflorescence/flowers: Clustered, bell-shaped, white to pinkish flowers (2) with superior ovary. Finely glandular-bristly (3). Fruit: Red (2), sticky berry-like drupe (3). Similar species: Distinguished from Arctostaphylos pungens by sticky, glandular-bristly young stems, leaves, flowers and fruits (3). Ecology Life history: Perennial tree or shrub (1) Native/introduced: Native (1) Photosynthetic pathway: Phenology: February through April (2) Distribution: Found on dry mountain slopes in chaparral and open pine forest at 4000 – 7900 feet (2, 5). In Arizona, present in Mohave, Coconino, Yavapai, Gila, Graham, Maricopa, Pima, and Cochise counties. Also found in Utah, Nevada and California (1). Uses The Navajo use the berries to make a beverage or jelly or simply eat them raw. The seeds are ground into porridge (6). References 1. USDA, NRCS. 2007. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov, 30 October 2007). National Plant Data Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70874-4490 USA. 2. Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. 2007. Native Plant Information Network (http://www.wildflower.org, 30 October 2007). University of Texas, Austin, TX 78739 USA. 3. The Jepson Herbarium. 2007. The Jepson Flora Project (http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/jepson_flora_project.html, 30 October 2007). University of California, Berkeley. 4. The Pringle Herbarium (http://www.uvm.edu/~plantbio/pringle, 30 October 2007). University of Vermont. 5. Calflora. 2007. The Calflora Database (http://www.calflora.org, 30 October 2007). Berkeley, CA. 6. Moerman, D. 2003. Native American Ethnobotany Database (http://herb.umd.umich.edu, 30 October 2007). University of Michigan, Dearborn, MI 48198 USA.