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Native Plant Propagation Guidelines:
shrubs

Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (kinnikinnick)

Category: 
shrubs

kinnikinnick (photo by Moralea Milne)

Prostrate shrub with somewhat stoloniferous rooting stems sometimes forming mats several meters wide; bark reddish to brownish, peeling off; stems ascending at the tip, 5-15 cm tall, minutely hairy, sometimes glandular. Leaves: Alternate, evergreen, leathery, egg- to spoon-shaped, 1-3 cm long, 0.3-1.2 cm wide, rounded at tip, rarely pointed, narrowed basally; entire, glabrous to minutely hairy especially on the margins and midrib, dark green above, paler below; stalks 2-5 mm long. Flowers: several in few-flowered terminal clusters; flower stalks 2-5 mm long, straight or curved, borne in the axils of hairy bracts; corollas pinkish-white, urn-shaped, 4-6 mm long, five lobed; clayces 1-1.5 mm long. Fruits: berries, bright red, 5-10 mm wide (Douglas et al., 1999). Photo by Moralea Milne.

Scientific Name: 

Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (L.) Spreng. (A. uva-ursi ssp. uva-ursi, A. uva-ursi ssp. adenotricha [Fern. & Macbr.] Calder & Taylor, A. uva ursi ssp. stipitata Packer & Denford, A uva-ursi ssp. longipilosa Packer & Denford, A. uva-ursi ssp. coactilis [Fern. & Macbr.] Love, Love, & Kapoor)

Family: 
Ericaceae
English Name: 
kinnikinnick
Other Names: 
common bearberry, mealberry, sandberry

Geographical Range and Habitat Requirements

Ecological Setting: 

Dry forests and exposed, often rocky sites in the lowland to lower alpine zones (Douglas et al., 1999.) Dry rocky slopes, dry forest and clearings (Pojar and Mackinnon, 1994).

Soil Texture: 

Strongly drained coarse-skeletal soils on water-shedding sites (Klinka et al., 1989). Sandy and gravelly soils; dry rocky slopes (Pojar and Mackinnnon, 1994). Well-drained and gravelly soils (Randall et al., 1994).

Nutrients: 

Nitrogen poor soils (Klinka et al., 1989).

Soil Reaction and Salinity: 

Mor humus forms (Klinka et al., 1989). Prefers pH 4.5 to 5.5.

Moisture Regime: 

Well-drained (Pojar and Mackinnon, 1994).

Shade Tolerance: 

Shade tolerant/intolerant (Klinka et al., 1989). Sun or part shade (Helliwell, 1987).

Successional Status: 

Common in open canopy in young seral lodgepole pine forests (Klinka et al., 1989).

BEC Zone and GOE Community Status: 

On rock outcrops.

Uses

Site Rehabilitation: 

Good for erosion control on slopes (MacKenzie, 1989).

Wildlife: 

Browsed by deer, elk, bighorn sheep, and moose. The fruits are eaten by birds, deer, elk, small mammals and bears (MacKenzie, 1989).

Landscaping: 

Rockeries, banks and any open, dry, sunny location; also under pines, arbutus (B. Costanzo, personal communication). Good soil stabilizer use as ground cover or bank cover and good alternative to lawn in hard to mow places. Also in rockeries or rock wall; evergreen; salt tolerant; grows well with Ceanothus velutinus (S. Bastin, personal communication).

First Nations: 

Dried leaves smoked (Pojar and Mackinnon, 1994).

Other Uses: 

The root tea was a treatment for persistent cough, but should be used with caution as it is high in tannin and arbutin (Plantwatch). Warnings about the extended use of leaf tea point to stomach and liver problems and uterine contractions (Johnson et al., 1995).

Seed Propagation

Flowering Time: 

April - June

Fruit Ripening Time: 

June - August

Seed Collection Time: 

August – October (Banerjee et al., 2001)

Crop Intervals: 

Annual

Number of Seeds per Kilogram: 

59,080-83,555

Seed Viability: 

30-60% to as high as 80%

Fruit and Seed Collection and Extraction: 

Collect by hand from plants or off ground. Clean by maceration and separate the nutlets by flotation or blowing (Berg, 1974).

Seed Storage: 

Keep cool during transport (Banerjee et al., 2001).

Fruit/Seed Dormancy and Treatment: 

Seeds require an acid scarification treatment immerse in sulfuric acid for three to six hours. After scarification, warm stratification for 60 days followed by cold stratification for 60 days. Sow early in summer and mulch over winter (Berg, 1974).

Vegetative Propagation

Method Success Rate Time of Collection
Softwood cuttings Moderate to good Spring
Semi-hardwood cuttings Good July - September
Hardwood cuttings Moderate to good Winter
Root cuttings Good Fall
Suckers No information No information
Plant division Good from rooted creeping stems Early spring

Use new growth plus portion of one-year-old tissue. Use rooting hormone, plant in sandy medium, and place in mist irrigation greenhouse at 22 degrees C. Bottom heat and mycorrhizal inoculation can help rooting success (MacKenzie, 1989). Root cuttings 5-10 cm long and lay horizontally in peat, moisten and place in greenhouse (Holloway and Zasada, 1979).

Outplanting Characteristics and Requirements

Sun to partial shade; tolerates poor, dry, infertile soil (ph 4.5 to 5.5); space 12 to 24 inches; do not fertilize or prune (S. Bastin, personal communication.). Seedling growth is slow for the first three years, and then increases (Rose et al., 1980).

Seed and Cutting Propagation Techniques

n/a

Additional Information and Photos

For more information and pictures, visit the E-Flora BC website at www.eflora.bc.ca.