Carmel Ceanothus
Ceanothus griseus
The coastal California lilac behind several of the trade's best groundcovering selections, including 'Yankee Point' and 'Louis Edmunds'. Glossy dark leaves set off dense clusters of blue flowers that hum with bees in early spring. It takes ocean wind and heavier soil than most ceanothus, but resents summer water once established.
- Family
- Rhamnaceae
- Type
- shrub
- Lifespan
- perennial
- Height
- 14–14 ft
- Spacing
- 14–14 ft apart
- Light
- sun, part shade
- Soil moisture
- dry, moist
- Soil pH
- acidic, alkaline, neutral
- Bloom
- March, April, May
- Bloom colors
- blue
- Wildlife value
- butterflies, hummingbirds, mammals, songbirds
- Caterpillar hosts
- ~45 butterfly & moth species
- Landscape uses
- border
- Native states
- CA
Related native plants
More Ceanothus species
- Buckbrush (Ceanothus cuneatus)
- Snowbrush (Ceanothus velutinus)
- Blueblossom (Ceanothus thyrsiflorus)
- New Jersey Tea (Ceanothus americanus)
- Chaparral Whitethorn (Ceanothus leucodermis)
- Deerbrush (Ceanothus integerrimus)