Oceanspray

Oceanspray is a large native deciduous shrub of western North America, ranging from British Columbia south into California and east to the Rocky Mountains. In summer it produces dense, arching clusters of tiny cream-white flowers followed by persistent tan seed heads that hold through fall and winter. It is a high-value habitat plant, drawing native bees and butterflies at peak flowering while birds forage the seed heads well into the cold months.

The shrub adapts to a wide range of sites - coastal scrub, dry rocky slopes, open forest edges - and is drought tolerant once established. It performs well on slopes, where it contributes to erosion control. Mature plants develop multi-stemmed thickets; periodically removing the oldest canes at the base maintains vigor and keeps the structure open. The wood is exceptionally hard and dense, which explains the alternate common name ironwood. Prolonged waterlogged soil is not tolerated.

Several Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest prepared bark infusions for colds, fever, and gastrointestinal complaints. The hard wood was worked into arrows, tool handles, digging sticks, and needles across plateau and coastal cultures.