Malacothamnus arcuatus var. elmeri

Eastern bewildering bushmallow, hall's bushmallow

Family: Malvaceae · Type: shrub · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.2

Eastern bewildering bushmallow is a rare (CNPS 1B.2) California native shrub found in Northern Coast Ranges, Inner North Coast Ranges, Sierra Nevada Foothills, central Sierra Nevada, San Joaquin Valley, and San Francisco Bay Area in early-recovering post-burn woody vegetation and edges of openings at elevations of 0 to 760 meters. Flowering from April to May, this plant produces delicate pink to white flowers with stalked stellate hairs. Growing up to 3 meters tall with an occasionally spreading habit, it develops branching stems covered in soft, fine hairs. Its leaves are rounded to widely ovate, with bases ranging from obtuse to slightly heart-shaped, featuring dense stellate hairs that are more prominent on the leaf undersides. In disturbed areas, this bushmallow can persist and spread through rhizomes, making it a resilient pioneer species in recovering landscapes.

Habitat: Early-recovering post-burn woody vegetation, edges of openings, some plants occasionally persisting into more mature vegetation stages

Bloom period: (Mar)Apr-May(Jun)

Elevation: 0-760 m

Bioregions: NCoRO, NCoRI, SNF, c SNH, SnJV, SnFrB.

California counties: Contra Costa, Merced, Santa Clara, Lake, Mendocino, San Mateo, Mono

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