Malacothamnus densiflorus

Many-flowered bush mallow

Family: Malvaceae · Type: shrub · Native

Many-flowered bush mallow is a California native shrub found in southern California, San Bernardino Mountains, Peninsular Ranges, and desert regions of southern California in chaparral slopes at elevations of 100 to 1,100 meters. Flowering from May to July and September to October, this plant produces pink to white flowers in dense, interrupted spikes with individual blossoms up to 2.5 centimeters long. Growing up to 2.5 meters tall with a potentially spreading habit via rhizomes, it features sparsely to moderately stellate-hairy stems where the stem surface remains partially visible through the hair coverage. Its leaf blades are roughly round to widely ovate, bright green on top and paler underneath, sometimes unlobed or with 3 to 5 subtle rounded lobes, and characterized by a heart-shaped or obtuse base. The plant's flowers emerge from linear or awl-shaped bracts, with calyces ranging from 8 to 16 millimeters long and displaying triangular to ovate lobes with acuminate tips.

Habitat: Chaparral slopes

Bloom period: May-Jul, Sep-Oct

Elevation: 100-1100 m.

Bioregions: SCo, SnBr, PR, DSon

California counties: Riverside, San Diego, Orange, Los Angeles, Ventura, San Bernardino

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