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Ceanothus hearstiorum (Hearst Ranch Buckbrush) - A prostrate groundcover less than 12 inches tall that spreads 6 to 8 feet across, branches of young plants form a star-like pattern, radiating outward as they cloak the earth with their red-brown stems and linear, somewhat rectangular, ½ to 1-inch long, dark green leaves. The warty, glandular leaf surface is an attractive textural backdrop to the masses of light to medium blue, rounded flower clusters that bloom in spring.
Along the immediate coast, plants are fully drought tolerant and grow well in full sun to light shade. Away from the ocean’s influence, provide part shade and occasional irrigation during summer. This is one of the more shade-tolerant species of ceanothus but needs well-drained soils to thrive. It is hardy down to at least 15 F. Tip prune young plants to encourage a dense, solid cover.
Ceanothus hearstiorum is restricted in the wild to a few populations around Arroyo de la Cruz in in northern San Luis Obispo County along the central coast, this rare native is among the lowest of the cultivated ceanothus.
The genus name comes from the Greek word keanthos which was used to describe a type of thistle and meaning a "thorny plant" or "spiny plant" and first used by Linnaeus in 1753 to describe New Jersey Tea, Ceanothus americanus. The specific epithet is in reference to the Hearst Ranch from where this plant was discovered. It was first described in 1966 by Robert Francis Hoover and James B. Roof in "Four Seasons", the Journal of the East Bay Regional Parks Botanic Garden. Another common names is Hearst's Ceanothus.
This information about Ceanothus hearstiorum displayed is based on research conducted in our horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also will relate observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we receive from others and we welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share any cultural information that would aid others in growing it.
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