Comments on: Mr. Manzanita’s Favorite Manzanita

By: Clark

Clark — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 04:36:49 +0000

Hello, you’ve solved a great mystery for me. I have a house south of San Felipe, in Baja, and taken a (very) amateur interest in the local botany. There is one very prevalent tree that I’ve never been able to pin down, but your picture of a Red Elephant Tree, Bursera hindsiana, makes me think that’s what it is. I’d ruled out the Elephant Tree because my field guide, and other photos, always show a different subspecies, which has yellowish bark, but my trees are markedly red, or reddish brown, and your photo looks just like what I’ve been admiring all these years. Thanks!

By: ryan

ryan — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 16:14:35 +0000

We have a John Dourley and have planted it in a few yards. It’s nice, all have survived, but they have all been slow compared to other manzanitas. I’ve seen really beautiful Lester Rountrees, but have never planted one. I want to try one; no doubt eventually I will. There are so many good manzanitas.

By: chuck b.

chuck b. — Tue, 16 Mar 2010 05:23:08 +0000

‘Paradise’ is nice! It took me a while to warm up to the parajo manzanitas but they’ve been my favorite for awhile now. Betsy Clebsch advocates ‘John Dourley’. She says the big, showy fruit make it standout. I don’t disagree. But I have ‘Lester Rountree’. Which I got for…free. (No more rhymes) Visually, I’m not very happy with it right now but I’m going to give it a few more years to develop the trunk structure I like so much.

By: ryan

ryan — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 18:28:30 +0000

I’ve done some endless manzanita bushwacks too, where the sea of manzanita seems to go on forever. It does always seem to be scorching hot. But it’s better than fighting through mountain whitethorn…

By: Matt

Matt — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 06:27:39 +0000

Ha! I was starting to think, “hey, I’ve been hearing a few things about the pajaroensis,” and now I found that they are all linked together. I go to Tilden with my daughter frequently, and we always romp around the manzanita, especially the Kings . . . mountain is it? Magestic.

I used to HATE manzanita because my only experience with it was when I had to bushwhack through stands of it in the Sierra. Miserable! And it usually meant it was hot out, too. I started to see them in gardens as individuals instead of thickets, and saw how beautiful they can be: that characteristic color, the flowers, and the branch structure. I mentioned it to my wife (also climbing partner) and she basically said NO WAY until I showed he garden selections. We now have about 5 in our yard, but they are the McMinns. I envy some of the more striking versions, but maybe I just need to be patient and let ours grow.

By: Brad B

Brad B — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 17:52:10 +0000

Thanks for the mention. And I’m extremely satisfied with my purchase. I needed a specimen plant for a berm and once it’s bigger it will be a much needed touch of color and form for the front yard.