Frangula

californica

Frangula californica (previously classified as Rhamnus californica) is a species of flowering

plant in the buckthorn family native to western North America.[2][3][4] It produces edible fruits
and seeds.[5] It is commonly known as California coffeeberry and California buckthorn.
 Frangula californica

Conservation status

Secure (NatureServe)[1]

Scientific classification

Kingdom: Plantae

Clade: Tracheophytes

Clade: Angiosperms

Clade: Eudicots

Clade: Rosids

Order: Rosales

Family: Rhamnaceae

Genus: Frangula

Species: F. californica

Binomial name

Frangula californica
(Eschsch.) A.Gray[2][3][4]

Synonyms

Rhamnus californica Eschsch.

 Distribution

It is native to California, the Southwestern United States, and Baja California state in
Mexico.[3] It is an introduced species in Hawaii.[1]

The plant occurs in oak woodland and chaparral habitats, numerous others in its range.[6]
Individual plants can live an estimated 100 to 200 years.[7]

Description

Frangula californica is a shrub 3–12 feet (0.91–3.66 m) tall.[6] 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.[2] More commonly it is a shrub between 3–6 feet (0.91–1.83 m) tall.[2]

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.

Inflorescence and fruit

…
The 1/8" greenish flowers occur in clusters in the leaf axils, have 5 sepals, and 5 shorter
petals.[6] It blooms in May and June.[6] 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.

Frangula californica subsp. californica in flower

 

Ripening fruit

Subspecies
…
Subspecies of Frangula californica include:[7][8]

Frangula californica subsp. californica — California coffeeberry; widespread in western

California. Fruit with two seeds; twigs red; leaves with conspicuous veins.[9][10]

Frangula californica subsp. crassifolia — serpentine hoary coffeeberry; endemic to the Inner
North California Coast Ranges, on serpentine soils.[11]

Frangula californica subsp. cuspidata — Sierra hoary coffeeberry; Southern Sierras,

Transverse Ranges, Peninsular Ranges.[12]

Frangula californica subsp. occidentalis — Western California coffeeberry; on serpentine

soils in northern California and southwestern Oregon, in the Klamath Mountains and North
California Coast Ranges. Fruit with three seeds; twigs brown; leaves with inconspicuous
veins.[13][14]

Frangula californica subsp. tomentella — hoary coffeeberry.[15][16]

Frangula californica subsp. ursina — desert hoary coffeeberry; endemic to the San
Bernardino Mountains and Mojave Desert sky islands.[17]

Ecology

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.[8]
It can be found alongside chaparral whitethorn (Ceanothus leucodermis), toyon (Heteromeles
arbutifolia), skunkbush (Rhus trilobata), redberry (Rhamnus crocea), and western poison oak
(Toxicodendron diversilobum). In brushy mountain habitat it grows among many species of
manzanita.[7]

The plant reproduces sexually by seed and vegetatively by sprouting. After wildfire or cutting,
the plant generally resprouts from its root crown. Reproduction via seed is most common in
mature stands of the plant. It produces seeds by 2 or 3 years of age. Seeds are mature in the
fall. Seed dispersal is often performed by birds, which are attracted to the fruit; some plants
are so stripped of fruit by birds that hardly any seeds fall below the parent plant.[7]

This long-lived plant is persistent and becomes a dominant species in many habitat types,
such as coastal woodlands. In the absence of wildfire, the shrub can grow large, with a wide
spread that can shade out other flora. When fire occurs, the plant can be very damaged but it
readily resprouts from the surviving root crown, which is covered in buds for the purpose. It
reaches its pre-burn size relatively quickly.[7]

Parts of the plant, including the foliage and fruit, are food for wild animals such as mule deer,
black bears, and many resident and migrating birds, as well as livestock.[7]

Uses

Cultivation
…
This plant is cultivated as an ornamental plant by plant nurseries, for planting in native plant,
water conserving, and wildlife gardens; in large pots and containers; and in natural
landscaping and habitat restoration projects.[18][19][20][21]

It is also used for erosion control, and is usually deer resistant.[7][19] As a pollinator plant it is
of special value to native butterflies and bees.[18][22]

Cultivars
…
Cultivars of the species, for use as an ornamental plant, include:[23]

Frangula (Rhamnus) californica 'Eve Case' — Eve Case coffeeberry; smaller and more
compact (3-6' H x 3-4' W), with denser foliage and larger berries than species.[20][24]
Introduced by the Saratoga Horticultural Foundation in 1975.[25]

Frangula (Rhamnus) californica 'Leatherleaf' — Leatherleaf coffeeberry; with black-green

foliage.[26]
 Frangula (Rhamnus) californica 'Mound San Bruno' — smaller leaves, more dense and
compact, particularly tolerant of garden conditions.[20][27]

Frangula (Rhamnus) californica ‘Seaview’ — a ground cover variety.[20]

Closeup of flower.

Food and medicine

…
Ingestion of ripe Frangula californica berries causes nausea and vomiting, although there are
claims that the berries and seeds are safe and edible. The seeds inside the berries have been
used to make coffee substitute.

Although the plant itself looks much like a coffee plant, its berries, which are succulent, do
not.

Native Americans of the west coast of North America had several uses for the plant as food,
and used parts of it as a traditional medicinal plant.[7] Several tribes of the indigenous
peoples of California ate the fruit fresh or dried.[28]

The Ohlone people used the leaves to treat poison oak dermatitis.[28] The Kumeyaay people
had similar uses for its bark.[28] The Kawaiisu used the fruit to treat wounds such as burns.[28]
The bark was widely used as a laxative by the indigenous peoples.[28]

Names for the plant in the Konkow language of the Concow tribe include pä and pö.[29]

References

1. Frangula californica. (http://www.natureserve.org/explorer/servlet/NatureServe?searchName=Rhamn

us+californica) NatureServe. 2012.
 2. Jepson (TJM2): Frangula californica (http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_IJM.pl?tid=26041) .
accessed 4.5.2015

3. "Frangula californica" (https://npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxonomydetail.aspx?id=403162) .

Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN). Agricultural Research Service (ARS), United
States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 2 January 2018.

4. USDA: Frangula californica (http://plants.usda.gov/core/profile?symbol=FRCA12) . accessed

4.5.2015

5. http://honest-food.net/2014/08/13/california-coffeeberry-edible/ . Accessed 15.6.2015.

. Flowering Plants of the Santa Monica Mountains, revised 2000, p. 168

7. McMurray, N. E. 1990. Rhamnus californica. In: Fire Effects Information System. USDA FS. Rocky
Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory.

. Calflora: Frangula californica − Subspecies and Varieties (http://www.calflora.org/cgi-bin/species_qu

ery.cgi?where-taxon=Frangula+californica)

9. Calflora: Frangula californica subsp. californica (http://www.calflora.org/cgi-bin/species_query.cgi?w

here-taxon=Frangula+californica+ssp.+californica) . accessed 4.5.2015.

10. Jepson: Frangula californica subsp. californica (http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_IJM.pl?tid=5

0563) . accessed 4.4.2015.

11. Jepson: Frangula californica subsp. crassifolia (http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_IJM.pl?tid=5

0564) . accessed 4.4.2015.

12. Calflora: Frangula californica subsp. cuspidata (http://www.calflora.org/cgi-bin/species_query.cgi?wh

ere-taxon=Frangula+californica+ssp.+cuspidata) . accessed 4.5.2015.

13. Calflora: Frangula californica subsp. occidentalis (http://www.calflora.org/cgi-bin/species_query.cgi?

where-taxon=Frangula+californica+ssp.+occidentalis) . accessed 4.5.2015.

14. Jepson: Frangula californica subsp. occidentalis (http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_IJM.pl?tid=

50566) . accessed 4.4.2015.

15. Calflora: Frangula californica subsp. tomentella (http://www.calflora.org/cgi-bin/species_query.cgi?w

here-taxon=Frangula+californica+ssp.+tomentella) . accessed 4.5.2015.

1 . Jepson: Frangula californica subsp. tomentella (http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_IJM.pl?tid=5

0567) . accessed 4.4.2015.

17. Jepson: Frangula californica subsp. ursina (http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/get_IJM.pl?tid=5056

8) . accessed 4.4.2015.

1 . NPIN—Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center: Frangula californica (California buckthorn, California
Coffeeberry) (http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=FRCA12)

19. Las Pilitas Horticulture Database: Frangula (Rhamnus) californica (Coffeeberry) (http://www.laspilita
s.com/nature-of-california/plants/566--rhamnus-californica)
20. California Native Plant Society, "Gardening with Natives" blog: Frangula californica (California
Coffeeberry) (http://grownatives.cnps.org/2010/09/28/california-coffeeberry/) ; posted September
28, 2010; accessed 4.4.2015

21. Native Plants Network.org: Propagation protocol for production of container Frangula californica (htt
p://www.nativeplantnetwork.org/network/ViewProtocols.aspx?ProtocolID=672,716)

22. "Theodore Payne Foundation: Frangula (Rhamnus) californica" (https://web.archive.org/web/2017120

4121929/http://www.theodorepayne.org/mediawiki/index.php?title=Rhamnus_californica_%27Eve_C
ase%27) . Archived from the original (http://www.theodorepayne.org/mediawiki/index.php?title=Rha
mnus_californica_'Eve_Case') on 2017-12-04. Retrieved 2015-04-05.

23. California Native Plants for the Garden. Bornstein, Carol, David Fross, and Bart O'Brien. Los Olivos, CA:
Cachuma Press. 2005.

24. "Theodore Payne Foundation — California Natives Wiki: Frangula (Rhamnus) californica 'Eve Case' " (h
ttps://web.archive.org/web/20171204121929/http://www.theodorepayne.org/mediawiki/index.php?ti
tle=Rhamnus_californica_%27Eve_Case%27) . Archived from the original (http://www.theodorepayn
e.org/mediawiki/index.php?title=Rhamnus_californica_'Eve_Case') on 2017-12-04. Retrieved
2015-04-05.

25. San Marcos Growers horticulture database: Frangula (Rhamnus) californica 'Eve Case' (http://www.s
mgrowers.com/products/plants/plantdisplay.asp?plant_id=1347)

2 . San Marcos Growers horticulture database: Frangula (Rhamnus) californica 'Leatherleaf' (http://www.
smgrowers.com/products/plants/plantdisplay.asp?plant_id=3552)

27. San Marcos Growers horticulture database: Frangula (Rhamnus) californica 'Mound San Bruno' (htt
p://www.smgrowers.com/products/plants/plantdisplay.asp?plant_id=1850)

2 . University of Michigan, Dearborn − Native American Ethnobotany: Frangula californica (http://herb.um

d.umich.edu/herb/search.pl?searchstring=Frangula+californica) . accessed 4.4.2015

29. Chesnut, V. K. (1902). Plants used by the Indians of Mendocino County, California (https://books.goog
le.com/books?id=vLkUAAAAYAAJ) . Government Printing Office. p. 407. Retrieved 24 August 2012.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Frangula californica.

Calflora Database: Frangula californica (California coffeeberry) (http://www.calflora.org/cgi-

bin/species_query.cgi?where-taxon=Frangula+californica)

USDA Plants Profile for Frangula californica (California buckthorn) (http://plants.usda.gov/c

ore/profile?symbol=FRCA12)

Jepson eFlora (TJM2) treatment of Frangula californica (http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/

get_IJM.pl?tid=26041)
 Jepson Manual (TJM93) archived page: Rhamnus californica (http://ucjeps.berkeley.ed
u/cgi-bin/get_JM_treatment.pl?Rhamnus+californica)

Frangula californica — UC Photos gallery (http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi-bin/img_query?

where-taxon=Frangula+californica&where-anno=1)

Retrieved from
"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?
title=Frangula_californica&oldid=1047181675"

Last edited 4 months ago by JJMC89 bot III