We’re awfully fond of this ground-hugging California native, and with good reason. Ceanothus gloriosus ‘Anchor Bay’ makes a dense evergreen mound of dark, lustrous foliage that stays handsome all year, then absolutely lets loose in spring with a lavish display of bright blue flowers. It’s a pollinator magnet, drawing in bees, butterflies, and other welcome garden visitors, and it’s especially fine spilling over slopes, softening borders, or rambling through naturalistic plantings. Tough, tidy, and very good-looking, it thrives in well-drained soil with little water once established, though inland gardens appreciate a bit of shade and occasional summer water. Deer resistant, drought tolerant, and wonderfully useful in dry California gardens. About 1–2' tall and 6–8' wide.

Looking for plants for hot, dry, and hard-to-water areas? Our blog shares tips for choosing eye-catching tough plants.

This is a California lilac for spreading sideways rather than reaching for the sky. ‘Anchor Bay’ forms a broad, ground-hugging evergreen shrub with glossy, dark leaves and a handsome, muscular texture that looks good even when the flowers are finished. In spring, the foliage nearly disappears beneath clusters of intense cobalt-blue bloom.

Use it on banks, over retaining walls, along a dry border, or wherever a low woody groundcover can help cover soil without looking flat. It is particularly well suited to coastal gardens and other mild, summer-dry settings. Once established, unnecessary summer irrigation is more likely to annoy it than impress it.

Explore more Ceanothus and California lilacs.

We guarantee that the plants we sell are healthy and viable at the time they leave our care.

If a plant arrives in substandard condition, please take clear photographs and contact us within 48 hours of delivery. To ensure eligibility under this guarantee, we strongly encourage you to open and unpack your shipment immediately upon delivery and inspect the plants thoroughly.

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$14.99 flat rate for up to 6 plants is for standard FedEx/UPS Ground shipping to eligible states only. $19.99 for up to 12 plants. Plants being shipped to the following states are sent via Express Mail to help ensure they arrive quickly and healthy. 

(AL, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IN, KY, ME, MD, MA, MI, NH, NJ, NY, NC, OH, PA, RI, SC, TN, VT, VA, WV)
(list of states subject to change seasonally due to extreme heat or cold conditions)

We cannot ship Annie's Annuals plants to P.O. boxes or outside the continental U.S.

Individual plants are shipped in 4" pots and we ship in boxes of 4, 6, 8, or 12 plants per box.

For more details, read our full Ordering and Shipping Policies

Get your plants off to a strong start with our care guide.

Download the Plant Care Guide (PDF)