Diplacus grandiflorus
Sticky monkeyflower
(c) Steve Matson, some rights reserved (CC BY) · licence
Family: Phrymaceae · Type: Shrub · Native
Diplacus grandiflorus (Sticky monkeyflower) is a native California shrub in the Phrymaceae family, recognized by shrub with large pale flowers and 2-lobed petals.
Sticky monkeyflower is a California native shrub found in northern Sierra Nevada and northern South Coast Ranges on steep canyon banks and rocky hillsides at elevations of 90 to 1,530 meters. Flowering from March to June, this plant produces pale yellow to white or orange flowers with distinctive two-lobed corolla lobes, typically two flowers per node. Growing with minutely coarse-hairy stems as a subshrub or shrub, it reaches moderate heights with an upright, branching structure. Its leaves are narrowly elliptic to linear, uniformly green and glabrous, with edges that remain flat or slightly rolled under during drought conditions. The plant produces fruits 16 to 25 millimeters long that split along the upper suture.
Identification and appearance
Key characters: 20 sympatric species; shrub with large pale flowers and 2-lobed petals
Habitat and range
Habitat: Steep banks of canyons, rocky hillsides
Elevation: 90-1530(1830) m
Bloom period
Diplacus grandiflorus blooms Mar-Jun.
How to tell it apart
vs Erythranthe: Diplacus has a corolla that withers and stays attached and typically grows in dry, rocky places; Erythranthe drops its corolla cleanly and favors wet seeps and streambanks.; vs Mimulus: Diplacus covers the shrubby and small annual western monkeyflowers with ribbed, inflating calyces; Mimulus (in the strict sense) is a fleshy-stemmed perennial with squarish 4-angled stems.; vs Mimetanthe: Diplacus is puberulent to glandular with a distinctly 2-lipped flower; Mimetanthe is densely long-soft-wavy-hairy with tiny yellow flowers and a nearly regular calyx.; vs Collinsia: Diplacus has an open funnel-throated corolla and a 5-ribbed calyx; Collinsia has a sharply 2-lipped flower with the middle lower lobe folded into a keel that hides the stamens.; vs Antirrhinum: Diplacus has an open-throated corolla and free calyx lobes; Antirrhinum (snapdragon) has a closed, pouched throat sealed by a palate and a spurless sac at the base.
Frequently asked questions
Is Diplacus grandiflorus native to California?
Yes. Diplacus grandiflorus is native to California (recorded as native).
When does Diplacus grandiflorus bloom?
Diplacus grandiflorus blooms Mar-Jun.
What plant family does Diplacus grandiflorus belong to?
Diplacus grandiflorus is in the Phrymaceae family, genus Diplacus.
What habitat does Diplacus grandiflorus grow in?
Diplacus grandiflorus grows in Steep banks of canyons, rocky hillsides.
Related species
Other California species in the same genus, family, or bioregion.
Sources: Jepson eFlora · CalPhotos
Last updated 2026-10-08
Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Cal-IPC, and more.