Arbutus × reyorum ‘Marina’ Marina strawberry tree

A. ‘Marina’ is a hybrid of European species of Arbutus named and introduced in 1984 by the Saratoga Horticultural Research Foundation (SHRF). See its SHRF Plant Culture Data Sheet for notes on its possible parentage. It strongly resembles A. unedo but has larger leaves, rosy pink flowers, and peeling bark revealing smooth, reddish new bark similar to A. menziesii.

A girthy specimen is on Lomita Drive at the entrance to the parking lot adjacent to Harmony House. Other specimens are on Lomita Mall east of the Gordon and Betty Moore Materials Research Building and one is to the left of the Santa Teresa Street entrance to the Humanities Center. There are three great ones west of the Center for Educational Research (CERAS).

Illustrations: gallery.