About Arctostaphylos luciana P.V.Wells
Arctostaphylos luciana is a shrub or small multi-trunked tree that reaches 2–3 metres (6.6–9.8 ft) in height. Its leaves are glaucous gray, with texture ranging from waxy and woolly to smooth and hairless, and have smooth edges. The leaves are articulate with lobed bases, shaped rounded to oval, 1.5–2.5 centimetres (0.59–0.98 in) wide and 2–4 centimetres (0.79–1.57 in) long. Its inflorescence is a cluster of hairless, urn-shaped, downward-facing "manzanita" flowers that are pink and white. This species blooms from February to March. Its fruit is a red to green-red drupe that grows up to 1.2 centimetres (0.47 in) wide. This woody plant is endemic to the southern Santa Lucia Mountains in San Luis Obispo County. It grows in coastal sage scrub chaparral habitats, on shale outcrops and slopes, at elevations between 100 and 800 metres (330 to 2,620 ft). It occurs on ocean-facing slopes within the upper boundary of the marine layer.
