Malacothamnus fasciculatus


Malacothamnus fasciculatus, with the common name chaparral mallow, is a species of flowering plant in the mallow family. It is found in far western North America.

Distribution

The plant is native to southern California and northern Baja California, where it is a common member of the chaparral and coastal sage scrub plant communities.

Description

Malacothamnus fasciculatus is a shrub with a slender, multibranched stem growing in height. It is coated thinly to densely in white or brownish hairs.
The leaves are oval or rounded in shape, 2 to 11 centimeters long, and sometimes divided into lobes. The inflorescence is an elongated cluster of many pale pink flowers with petals under a centimeter long.

Varieties

It is a highly variable plant which is sometimes described as a spectrum of varieties, and which is sometimes hard to differentiate from other Malacothamnus species.

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