About Arctostaphylos rudis Jeps. & Wiesl.
Arctostaphylos rudis Jeps. & Wiesl. is an erect shrub that grows from a burl, reaching heights between 1 and 2 meters, or 3 and 6 feet. Its stem and branches are covered in shredding gray and reddish bark, while smaller branches are coated in woolly fibers. The leaves are oval-shaped with smooth edges, bear few hairs, are green and shiny, and measure 1 to 3 centimeters long. It produces urn-shaped manzanita flowers in late fall and winter, and its fruits are hairless red drupes about a centimeter wide or slightly larger. In the wild, A. rudis grows alongside Arctostaphylos purissima, and the two species can be easily distinguished. A. rudis has gray, shredding bark and no hairs on new growth, while A. purissima has smooth red bark and hairy new growth. A. rudis is also slightly smaller on average than A. purissima. Arctostaphylos rudis is endemic to California, where it is only found on the southern Central Coast. It is most abundant at Burton Mesa in the hills north of Lompoc, and grows in chaparral and coastal sage scrub on sandy soils.
