Santa Lucia Bushmallow / Center For Plant Conservation
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Plant Profile

Santa Lucia Bushmallow (Malacothamnus palmeri var. palmeri)

Photo Credit: Keir Morse
  • Global Rank: T2 - Imperiled
  • Legal Status: N/A
  • Family: Malvaceae
  • State: CA
  • Nature Serve ID: 136142
  • Lifeform: Subshrub, Shrub
  • Date Inducted in National Collection:
Description:

Malacothamnus palmeri var. palmeri is a species of flowering plant in the Malvaceae (Mallow) family known by the common names Arroyo Seco bushmallow and Santa Lucia bushmallow. This is an erect shrub with a thick, branching stem reaching two meters or more in height. It is coated thinly to densely in woolly white or tan hairs. The lobed, oval leaves are no more than 8 centimeters long. The flower cluster is a headlike or elongated cluster of pale white to pinkish flowers with oval petals each up to 2-3 centimeters long.

Where is Santa Lucia Bushmallow (Malacothamnus palmeri var. palmeri) located in the wild?

Habitat:

Malacothamnus palmeri var. palmeri dwells in the rocky coastal chaparral on Central California. [CNPS]

Distribution:

Around 10 specimens of Malacothamnus palmeri var. palmeri have been found in San Luis Obispo and Monterey Counties of California. [CNPS]

States & Provinces:

Santa Lucia Bushmallow can be found in California

Which CPC Partners conserve Santa Lucia Bushmallow (Malacothamnus palmeri var. palmeri)?

CPC's Plant Sponsorship Program provides long term stewardship of rare plants in our National Collection. We are so grateful for all our donors who have made the Plant Sponsorship Program so successful. We are in the process of acknowledging all our wonderful plant sponsorship donors on our website. This is a work in progress and will be updated regularly.

Conservation Actions

  • 09/01/2020
  • Orthodox Seed Banking

Based on an September 2020 extract of the California Plant Rescue Database, Santa Barbara Botanic Garden holds 1 accessions of Malacothamnus palmeri var. palmeri in orthodox seed collection. There are as many as 50 seeds of this species in their collection - although some may have been used for curation testing or sent to back up.

  • 09/01/2020
  • Orthodox Seed Banking

Based on an September 2020 extract of the California Plant Rescue Database, California Botanic Garden holds 2 accessions of Malacothamnus palmeri var. palmeri in orthodox seed collection. There are as many as 267 seeds of this species in their collection - although some may have been used for curation testing or sent to back up.

  • 08/05/2020
  • Seed Collection

Based on an August 2020 extract of the California Plant Rescue Database, Santa Barbara Botanic Garden has collected 1 seed accessions of Malacothamnus palmeri var. palmeri from 1 plant occurrences listed in the California Natural Diversity Database. These collections together emcompass 7 maternal plants

  • 08/05/2020
  • Seed Collection

Based on an August 2020 extract of the California Plant Rescue Database, California Botanic Garden has collected 2 seed accessions of Malacothamnus palmeri var. palmeri from 2 plant occurrences listed in the California Natural Diversity Database. These collections together emcompass 10 maternal plants

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Nomenclature
Taxon Malacothamnus palmeri var. palmeri
Authority (S. Watson) Greene
Family Malvaceae
CPC Number 2786
ITIS 845929
USDA MAPA2
Duration Perennial
Common Names Santa Lucia Bushmallow | Palmer bush-mallow
Associated Scientific Names Malacothamnus palmeri var. palmeri | Malacothamnus palmeri
Distribution Around 10 specimens of Malacothamnus palmeri var. palmeri have been found in San Luis Obispo and Monterey Counties of California. [CNPS]
State Rank
State State Rank
California S2
Ecological Relationships

Photos

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