On 14 Feb 2003 11:43:59 GMT, PAMBLOC (Derek
Carver) wrote:

...ceanothus...can, on occasions, be pretty short-lived.

They prefer very well drained soil and lots of sun and air. Some
of the best ceanothus I know around here grow at the top of a
small rocky mountain (ca. 400' high) where there is almost no
soil. They are next to a large water reservoir, so I suspect
there's a steady trace of moisture underground even in the driest
weather, even though the landscape shows no signs of other plants
benefiting from leakage.

The buddleias you see growing in railway ballast exemplify this
kind of site.


--
Rodger Whitlock
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada