This is one of our favorite buckwheats. It is native to the Channel Islands  but will thrive in coastal and inland areas on the mainland. This small shrub is striking year-round  with a long bloom cycle from spring through fall. It is very drought tolerant and needs no water after it is well established. It is sun-loving  easy to grow and cold hardy. Santa Cruz Island Buckwheat has a neat mounding shape with foliage that is bluish green at first  maturing to a gray green. The broad flower clusters rise on stems above the foliage and are rosy pink  fading to cream and becoming a rusty red as the seeds set. This plant is a magnet for butterflies and the birds will flock to harvest the seeds in fall. At home you can use the flower heads in a dried flower arrangement.