I always thought Manzanita would make great Bonsai. I have been trying to create one from nursery stock. My efforts to date have not produced a tree yet. I have in fact killed a number of nice nursery trees and don’t really know why. But I have not given up and cannot seem to leave a nice nursery stock tree at the nursery. I now have 3 Manzanitas that I have managed to keep alive now for 3 years. So I am doing better and I least know now how to keep them alive. I have placed them in full sun and eastern sun only and they seem to do well. They get watered just like all of the other trees. Note: I may be watering them to much per articles below. They are still in the original nursery soil. It is important not to let a branch get shaded out as it will die off. My trees will flower in the spring and occasionally late in the season. So they must be happy? Kinnikinnick is in the Manzanita family and you can find these in local nurseries for sale. You may also find them in the Colorado mountains growing as a ground cover. The Denver Botanic Gardens Bonsai Pavilion has a very nice one planted in a tall cascade pot and it is allowed to grow unchecked and cascades down the sides of the pot. See below for photo of tree when it just under development.
Famed longtime Colorado yamadori collector Jerry Morris has told me that Manzanita do not transplant well. Jerry and another person did manage to bring back a very nice Utah yamadori and keep it alive. I tried to purchase the tree, but the owner did not want to sell it
I am surprised to see that there is a lot of interest in using Manzanita for Bonsai. I intend to keep trying until I get it down pat.
Name: Arctostaphylos
Common Names: Bearberry, Manzanita
Botanical & Ecological Characteristics:
Arctostaphylos by Cal Flora Note: Extensive descriptions of 117 different Manzanitas with photos.
Arctostaphylos by Wikipedia
Arctostaphylos Adans. manzanita by United States Department of Agriculture Note: Enlarge the map on the state you live in until you see what counties Manzanita are living in.
Arctostaphylos Ericaceae by World Botanical Associates Note: Great galleries of different Manzanitas.
Arctostaphylos Manzanita by United States Department of Agriculture
Arctostaphylos – Manzanita by Xera Plants Inc. Note: Great tips on , growing in containers, pruning and ramification.
Arctostaphylos pringlei – Pringle manzanita Range Map by Plant Maps Note: Arizona only
Arctostaphylos pungens – Pointleaf Manzanita by Southeastern Arizona Wildflowers and Plants
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi ‘Massachusetts’ by Missouri Botanic Gardens Note: Article states Manzanita like acidic conditions.
Arctostaphylos viscida by United States Department of Agriculture Note: Great tips on growing and seed germination.
Common Manzanita by Calscape
Growing Manzanita – December 21, 2016 by University of Arizona Cooperative Extension
Hairy manzanita Arctostaphyloscolumbiana by Washington State Education Department Note: Likes acidic soil.
Manzanita by Department of Forestry and Fire Management
Manzanita by Pacific Horticulture
Manzanita by Wikipedia
Manzanitas of California, (Arctostaphylos species) by Las Pilitas Nursery Note: Nice photos and videos.
MANZANITA TREES by Manzanita Branches
Village Nurseries Note: This is wholesale nursery. It does have a lot of different Manzanitas on its site with good descriptions of each.
Bonsai Information:
Note: Some of the information below are from forums where members are exchanging ideas on Manzanita Bonsai. Great information on them.
Arctostaphylos × coloradensis Bearberry; Manzanita by Denver Botanic Gardens
A Passion for Bonsai by Huntington Blogs
Collected Manzanita Note: Worthy attempt at collected yamadori. Looks like they did everything correctly, but the tree did not survive. Great photos to.
Galleries:
Denver Botanic Gardens Manzanita Bonsai New 02-27-2019
Note: The quality of some of these photos are not great. But I think you can get the idea. These photos will open up on the website they were found on. The beautiful yamadori tree below is provided courtesy of reddit user u/benjamis20.
