WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Arctostaphylos uva-ursi 'San Bruno Mountain', WUCOLS IV

How often to water San Bruno Mountain manzanita in California

In July in the Central Valley, established San Bruno Mountain manzanita in loam needs a deep watering about every 8 days: about 2.2 gallons each time for a plant 2 feet across, about 1.9 gallons a week. San Bruno Mountain manzanita is a vigorous bearberry selection from San Mateo County. Thick stems carry large, leathery, glossy leaves in a dense mat under a foot tall, and big red berries follow pale pink flowers. It does best near the coast. It tolerates garden water, though it still needs soil that drains.

Ground coverCalifornia nativeRated for 2 of 6 zones

How often to water San Bruno Mountain manzanita, month by month

Your city
Plant width
2 ft
Your soil

Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.

Every month, on your water days. The personal plan prints this for San Bruno Mountain manzanita and the rest of your yard, on the days your water supplier allows.Get the plan for $19

How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1.5 feet of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area the plant covers, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.

Which soil do you have?

Dig down a few inches, take a handful of moist soil and squeeze it.

  • Sandy: gritty, falls apart when you open your hand, will not form a ball.
  • Loam: forms a soft ball that crumbles when you poke it.
  • Clay: forms a firm, sticky ball and squeezes out into a ribbon between thumb and finger.

Still not sure? Pick loam. Most garden beds sit between sand and clay.

How to measure plant width

A shrub with its width marked from one side to the other and the circle under it shaded blue

Measure across the plant, from the tips of the leaves on one side to the tips on the other.

Water the whole area the plant covers, shown in blue. The gallons here cover that area.

A wider plant means more gallons each watering, not more waterings. While it is young, measure again each spring.

How to tell it needs water

  • Dry soil 2 to 3 inches below the thick mat means it is ready for a deep, slow watering
  • Large glossy leaves that sag and lose their shine by midafternoon, over dry soil, show the mat needs water
  • A thinning mat with yellow leaves while the soil stays wet suggests the roots are sitting in water
  • Dieback that spreads from a low, soggy corner of the planting points to drainage, not drought

How to water it

  • Water the whole mat with drip tubing laid in loops, reaching out toward the spreading stem tips
  • Wet the soil to about 8 to 12 inches deep, then wait until the top layer dries before the next watering
  • Choose well-drained ground, and avoid low spots where water collects after rain
  • Use it as a border beside a lawn if you like, but keep lawn spray from soaking its crown
  • Extend the drip loops outward as the vigorous mat grows wider each year

Through the seasons

Keep a new planting evenly moist through its first summer, while its stems root down and the mat thickens. Once established it needs less, and it tolerates garden water where drainage is good. The leathery leaves stay green all year. Pale pink to white flowers open in winter, and large red berries follow. WUCOLS rates it low water on the north-central coast. It rates moderate water in the Central Valley, where part shade helps. Winter rain covers the cool months in both of those zones. WUCOLS has not evaluated it for the south coast. WUCOLS marks it as not suited to South Inland, the high desert or the low desert.

In pots

This vigorous groundcover outgrows most pots within a few years, so treat a container as a temporary home or a large planter to trail from. Use an open, gritty mix and a pot that drains freely. Check the mix 1 to 2 inches down every few days in summer, and set the pot in part shade away from the coast. Water until it drains from the holes, then pour off the saucer. Get it into the ground while young, because bearberry does not like its roots moved once established.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
2.67gal per sq ft in JulyModerate water use in the Central Valley zone
A year
17.11 gal per sq ft
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses
0.671.32.02.70.4JAN0.65FEB1.09MAR1.52APR2.08MAY2.48JUN2.67JUL2.39AUG1.8SEP1.18OCT0.56NOV0.34DEC0.671.32.02.70.4JFM1.52AMJ2.67JAS1.18OND
Gallons per square foot per month, Central Valley. Peak 2.67 in Jul, 17.11 a year.

Monthly water need by climate zone

San Bruno Mountain Manzanita: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan0.150.4––––
Feb0.210.65––––
Mar0.351.09––––
Apr0.471.52––––
May0.582.08––––
Jun0.642.48––––
Jul0.642.67––––
Aug0.62.39––––
Sep0.51.8––––
Oct0.351.18––––
Nov0.190.56––––
Dec0.120.34––––
Year4.817.11––––

How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.

Plants with the same water needs 16

Rated moderate water in the Central Valley, like San Bruno Mountain manzanita. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

Star JasmineTrachelospermum jasminoides and cvs.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyHoneysuckleLonicera japonicamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyIvyHedera helixmoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyStrawberriesFragaria spp. & cvs. (CA native and non-natives species)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyCarpet BugleAjuga reptans (shade)moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyGreen Supreme ManzanitaArctostaphylos uva-ursi 'Green Supreme'moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyMassachusetts ManzanitaArctostaphylos uva-ursi 'Massachusetts'moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulySerbian BellflowerCampanula poscharskyanamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyBunchberryCornus canadensismoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyKenilworth IvyCymbalaria muralismoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyCranesbillGeranium spp.moderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyGreen CarpetHerniaria glabramoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulySpotted DeadnettleLamium maculatummoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyLemon BalmMelissa officinalismoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyJapanese SpurgePachysandra terminalismoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in JulyMoss PinkPhlox subulatamoderate water, Central Valley2.67 gal/sq ft in July

Similar plants that need less water 16

Rated lower than San Bruno Mountain manzanita in the Central Valley. Worth a look for a new bed or a lawn replacement.

BougainvilleaBougainvillea & spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyLantanaLantana camara ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyJunipersJuniperus spp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyYarrowAchillea millefolium (non-native hybrids)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySagebrushArtemisia spp. (shrubby)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyCalifornia Native YarrowAchillea millefolium (CA native cultivars)low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyWoolly YarrowAchillea tomentosalow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyGround Morning GloryConvolvulus mauritanicuslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyRock CotoneasterCotoneaster horizontalislow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulySouth African GeraniumPelargonium sidoideslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyLippia GroundcoverPhyla nodiflora (Lippia nodiflora) cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyRock SoapwortSaponaria ocymoideslow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyMother of ThymeThymus praecoxlow water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyVancouver Jade BearberryArctostaphylos uva-ursi 'Vancouver Jade'low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyTrailing LantanaLantana montevidensis (sellowiana) ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in JulyGermanderTeucrium chamaedrys ssp. & cvs.low water, Central Valley1.07 gal/sq ft in July
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes San Bruno Mountain manzanita, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.

Questions people ask

How much water does San Bruno Mountain manzanita need per day?

In July in the Central Valley, established San Bruno Mountain manzanita needs about 0.3 gallons a day for a plant 2 feet across and about 1.1 gallons a day for a plant 4 feet across. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.

Does watering for San Bruno Mountain manzanita change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates San Bruno Mountain manzanita separately for each of the six California climate zones: low water in the North-Central Coastal zone, moderate water in the Central Valley zone, not evaluated in the South Coastal zone, not suited to this region in the South Inland zone, not suited to this region in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, not suited to this region in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

Is this the same plant as the rare San Bruno Mountain manzanita?

No. This is a garden selection of bearberry, Arctostaphylos uva-ursi. The same common name is also used for Arctostaphylos imbricata, a different species native only to San Bruno Mountain. Check the botanical name on the nursery tag.

Can San Bruno Mountain manzanita grow next to a lawn?

Yes. It tolerates garden water and is recommended for a lawn border. Keep the soil well drained, and do not let sprinklers keep its crown wet.

How big does San Bruno Mountain manzanita get?

It stays under about a foot tall. It spreads 6 feet or more across in a dense, vigorous mat. Give it room at planting so you never need to cut it back hard.

Does San Bruno Mountain manzanita need sun or shade?

Near the coast it takes full sun to light shade. Inland, plant it in part shade. Shade inland also slows how fast the soil under the mat dries.

Do hummingbirds visit San Bruno Mountain manzanita?

Yes. The pale pink, urn-shaped flowers attract hummingbirds. The large red berries that follow are showy against the glossy leaves.

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Sources