Rhamnus crocea

Spiny redberry, Spiny Redberry

Family: Rhamnaceae · Type: shrub · Native

Spiny redberry is a California native shrub found in the Klamath Ranges, northern coastal ranges, southern High Sierra Nevada, central western, and southwestern California in coastal-sage scrub, chaparral, and woodland habitats at elevations below 1,150 meters. Flowering from January to April, this plant produces small, subtle flowers in sparse clusters on glabrous pedicels. Growing as a compact shrub under 2 meters tall, it features many spreading, stiff branches with distinctive red or red-purple twigs that are often thorn-tipped. Its evergreen leaves are thick and elliptic to obovate, 10 to 15 millimeters long, with sharp-toothed or entire margins and a rounded tip. The fruit is a bright red, two-stoned drupe approximately 6 millimeters long, adding ornamental interest to this tough, drought-tolerant shrub.

Habitat: Coastal-sage scrub, chaparral, woodland

Bloom period: Jan-Apr

Elevation: < 1150 m

Bioregions: KR, NCoRO, SNH, CW, SW

California counties: Los Angeles, San Diego, San Bernardino, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo, Riverside, Santa Barbara, Tuolumne, San Francisco, Alameda, Santa Clara, Lake, Ventura, Monterey, Orange, Marin, Tulare, Sacramento, Napa, El Dorado, Sonoma, San Benito, Kern, Solano, Mendocino, Contra Costa, Yuba, Butte, Humboldt, Siskiyou, Shasta, Trinity, Fresno

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.