Frangula californica
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Frangula californica (Rhamnus californica) |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| (unranked): | Rosids |
| Order: | Rosales |
| Family: | Rhamnaceae |
| Genus: | Rhamnus |
| Subgenus: | Frangula |
| Species: | R. californica—F. californica |
| Binomial name | |
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Rhamnus californica Frangula californica Eschsch. |
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| Synonyms | |
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Frangula californica (Eschsch.) A.Gray |
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Frangula californica (Eschsch.) A.Gray
Frangula californica (previously classified as Rhamnus californica) is a species of flowering plant in the buckthorn family native to western North America. It is commonly known as California coffeeberry and California buckthorn.
It is native to California, the Southwestern United States, and Baja California state in Mexico. It is an introduced species in Hawaii.
The plant occurs in oak woodland and chaparral habitats, numerous others in its range. Individual plants can live an estimated 100 to 200 years.
Frangula californica is a shrub 3–12 feet (0.91–3.66 m) tall. It is variable in form across subspecies. In favorable conditions the plant can develop into a small tree over 12 feet (3.7 m) tall. More commonly it is a shrub between 3–6 feet (0.91–1.83 m) tall.
The branches may have a reddish tinge and the new twigs are often red in color. The alternately arranged evergreen leaves are dark green above and paler on the undersides. The leaves have thin blades in moist habitat, and smaller, thicker blades in dry areas.
The 1/8" greenish flowers occur in clusters in the leaf axils, have 5 sepals, and 5 shorter petals. It blooms in May and June. The fruit is a juicy drupe which may be green, red, or black. It is just under a centimeter long and contains two seeds that resemble coffee beans.
Subspecies of Frangula californica (Rhamnus californica) include:
This shrub is a member of many plant communities and grows in many types of habitat, including California chaparral and woodlands, coastal sage scrub, and California oak woodlands. It grows in forest types such as foggy coastal oak woodlands, Coast redwood forests, California mixed evergreen forests, and mountain coniferous forests.
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