Horsfordia alata

Pink velvet-mallow

Family: Malvaceae · Type: shrub · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 4.3

Pink velvet-mallow is a California native shrub ranked 4.3 by CNPS, found in the southern desert regions of California in rocky canyons and washes at elevations of 100 to 600 meters. Flowering from December to April, this plant produces delicate pink flowers on short stalks 2 to 17 millimeters long. Growing to 1 to 2.5 meters tall with gray-yellow stems, it forms a distinctive shrubby structure with ovate leaves that have slightly heart-shaped bases and finely toothed edges. Its leaves measure 4 to 11 centimeters long, with petioles shorter than the leaf blade and acute tips. The fruit is approximately 7 to 8 millimeters in diameter, generally purple-tinted on top and divided into 9 to 10 segments.

Habitat: Rocky canyons, washes

Bloom period: Dec-Apr

Elevation: generally 100-600 m

Bioregions: DSon

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.