Medicinal Herb InfoA reference archive of plants and their traditions
Not medical advice. This site documents how plants have been described and used historically. It is a botanical and folklore reference, not guidance for treating illness, and it carries no dosing instructions. Talk to a doctor or pharmacist before using any plant medicinally — herbs interact with medication and some are toxic.

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Manzanita

Botanical reference entry

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Parts Usually Used

Fruits, leaves

Description of Plant(s) and Culture

Both green leaf and grey leaf manzanita are large, distinctive, evergreen shrubs; large crooked-branched from 3 to 6 feet high with smooth, red wood which is frequently used for dry decorations. The leaves are approximately 2 inches long, oval shaped, and leathery. With drooping panicles of attractive, small, urn-shaped pink or white flowers, followed by round berries in shades of red or pink.

Tolerates poor soil but must have good drainage. Do not tolerate lime in the soil but once established care is minimal and rarely needs watering in summer. ) or kinnikinnick as the Native Americans call it, is a third member of the heath family of manzanitas. It is a trailing evergreen that reaches a height of 6 inches and spreads to 15 feet or so. Reddish branches contrast with small bright-green leaves that turn bronze in the fall.

Where Found

Grow wild from northern California to Alaska; native to the west and northwest; Arizona, New Mexico.

Medicinal Properties

Fruits and leaves are astringent

Legends, Myths and Stories

Manzanita has been used in Europe and America as early as the 13th century. Leaves are harvested in late summer. Native Americans used the plant for food, leaves were for smoking, berries were eaten raw or ground into a meal for porridge. Cider and jelly were made from the berries. Used as a tobacco substitute or additive.

Uses

Historically, herbalists applied a decoction of manzanita leaves externally for rashes and exposure to poison ivy and poison oak. Folk traditions also utilized preparations of the berries and leaves for kidney ailments, dropsy, and female complaints.

Bibliography

The Herb Book , by John Lust, Bantam Books, 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY. copyright 1974. Indian Herbalogy of North America , by Alma R. , Lotus Press, PO Box 325, Twin Lakes. , 15 Columbus Circle, New York, NY 10023 The Rodale Herb Book: How to Use, Grow, and Buy Nature’s Miracle Plants (An Organic gardening and farming book) , edited by William H. Hylton, Rodale Press, Inc.

, 1974