Sidalcea hickmanii subsp. viridis

Marin checkerbloom, Marin Checkerbloom

Family: Malvaceae · Type: perennial · Native

Conservation status: CNPS 1B.1

Marin checkerbloom is a rare (CNPS 1B.1) California native perennial found in northern San Francisco Bay region, specifically in Marin County on Carson Ridge, inhabiting dry coastal ridges and serpentine landscapes at elevations of 50 to 400 meters. Flowering from May to June, this plant produces pale pink to lavender flowers in clusters with multiple blooms, typically more than 10 per inflorescence. Growing to less than 30 centimeters tall with several stems that are reddish near the base and sparsely covered in stellate hairs, the plant has an delicate, open structure. Its leaves are broadly shaped, 1 to 2.5 centimeters long and 2 to 4 centimeters wide, with coarse rounded teeth or shallow lobes that give the foliage a distinctive scalloped appearance. The flower petals range from 1.1 to 1.4 centimeters long, with calyx lobes featuring faint veining and evenly distributed hairs.

Habitat: dry ridges near coast, serpentine

Bloom period: May-Jun

Elevation: 50-400 m

Bioregions: n SnFrB (Carson Ridge, Marin Co.).

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