Sidalcea elegans

Del norte checkerbloom, Del Norte Checkerbloom

Family: Malvaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 3.3

Del norte checkerbloom is a rare (CNPS 3.3) California native perennial found in the Klamath Ranges in open dry woodland, generally on serpentine sites at elevations of 100 to 200 meters. Flowering from June to July, this plant produces soft pink to lavender flowers 20 to 25 millimeters long in an open, one-sided inflorescence with 5 to 10 blooms. Growing 20 to 60 centimeters tall with a woody taproot and slender, brittle stems that are nearly hairless and glaucous, it develops freely rooting rhizomes up to 30 centimeters long. Its mostly basal leaves are sparsely hairy, deeply lobed with 5 to 7 segments, and range from 1 to 10 centimeters wide, with upper leaves becoming progressively more reduced. The fruit segments are glandular and slightly stellate-puberulent with a short beak.

Habitat: Open dry woodland, generally serpentine

Bloom period: Jun-Jul

Elevation: 100-200(900) m

Bioregions: KR

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