Early Manzanita Flowering at Rayne Hawk Ranch

It’s been a strange winter, to say the least. Many places are experiencing a lot of unseasonable warmth. I’ve heard a lot of chatter from different regions with plants budding and flowering early.

I hadn’t seen so much of that here, until yesterday (11 Jan 2026). While walking around the property, I noticed that many of our Manzanita stands have started flowering. Some of the buds are just beginning to turn pink and enlarged, others are nearly ready to open.

Of course, it’s too cold now for the bugs to be out, so there won’t be any pollination. If they do get pollinated somehow, there’s still the risk of additional freezes here that cause the flowers to drop.

I am feeling a lot of grief at this occurrence. No longer can I say, “whew, but at least we haven’t seen that yet.” We eat manzanita flowers and berries, as do many of the other beings on our land, and this change in flowering schedule will certainly affect the food supply in spring, fall, and winter.