Horticultural selection from Frangula californica from Little sur. ‘Little sur’ is a very neat and compact evergreen Coffeeberry selection. It is ideally suited to smaller gardens since it stays under 4’h and 3-4′ spread. It has rich, dark green foliage year round, with small, white flowers in spring and eye-catching berries in the fall. The large berries start out green, then turn purple and finally black. Use this as a small hedge, under oaks, or as a feature shrub in a small garden or medium height accent shrub in a larger garden. It is naturally suited to coastal areas and most experts recommend some partial shade inland. However, it has done well for us in full sun at our inland site. As with the regular Coffeeberry, this shrub is a hub for birds who feast on the berries in fall.
Horticultural selection R. californica: origin = cuttings (1985) Little sur River mouth, central coast, Monterey Co.; intro Tree of Life Nursery 1987 Grows best in sandy, coarse-grained or other fast draining soil. Prefers sun or part shade in coastal sites, and part shade or shade in inland sites. Selected for the garden.