# mission manzanita

*Xylococcus bicolor*

Its scientific name Xylococcus bicolor translates to 'double-colored wood-berry', referencing its leaves which are dark green on top and fuzzy white underneath.

- **Taxonomy:** Plantae › Tracheophyta › Magnoliopsida › Ericales › Ericaceae › Xylococcus
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** stable
- **Biome:** grassland
- **Habitat:** Chaparral, coastal sage scrub, and dry oak woodlands
- **Diet:** Autotrophic (photosynthetic, utilizing sunlight, water, and soil nutrients)
- **Range:** Southern California, USA, Baja California, Mexico
- **Size:** 1.5 to 5 meters (5 to 16 feet) tall
- **Lifespan:** 50 to 100+ years
- **Active:** diurnal
- **Threats:** Habitat fragmentation due to urban development, altered wildfire regimes, and invasive weed encroachment.
- **Safe to approach?:** Harmless. You can safely approach and touch this plant. Respect the fragile chaparral habitat by staying on designated trails. Its dry, woody branches are highly flammable, so keep campfires and sparks far away.

## About

Xylococcus is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the heath family which contains the single species Xylococcus bicolor , the mission manzanita .

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/34227073-feb1-4f7a-8d7d-0b72327b7799
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/79543
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xylococcus bicolor
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/23516959/medium.jpg (John Rusk, CC-BY, via iNaturalist)

Habitat, diet, size and similar notes are AI-written summaries; check them against the linked sources before relying on them.