Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum Digital Library

Description

Rock hibiscus is a subshrub to a foot (30 cm) tall. The thin stems bear sparse foliage of triangular, gray leaves. One-inch (2.5 cm) flowers resemble those of the familiar tropical hibiscus; color ranges from white in the western part of its geographic range to deep purple-pink in the eastern end. Plants flower in response to rain during the warm season. Flowers can be found in almost any month below 1000 feet (300 m) elevation, but only in summer at 4000 feet (1200 m).

Range

It grows throughout the Sonoran Desert to western Texas and central Mexico.

The mallows number about 1500 species worldwide; most are characterized by alternate, simple, palmate leaves with stellate (branched, star-shaped) hairs. Mallow flowers are easily recognized by the filaments, which are united into a tube surrounding the style. Familiar examples include hibiscus, cotton, okra, and hollyhock.