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Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Perennial Forbs Around Las Vegas, Vegetation Around Las Vegas
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)

General: Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua) is an upright subshrub (doesn't really produce woody tissue) with many upright stems arising from the base. The leaves are pale greenish, 3-lobed (not deeply divided), crinkled, and covered with dense, fine gray, stellate (star-shaped) hairs. In spring, many orange, globe-shaped flowers are produced.

Desert Globemallow is a common component of desert scrub communities on flats and bajadas in the Lower Sonoran (Creosote-Bursage Flats) and Upper Sonoran (Mojave Desert Scrub) life zones. At higher elevations, it is less common.

Around Las Vegas, look for Desert Globemallow at Red Rock Canyon, Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Mojave National Preserve, and on the Desert National Wildlife Range.

Family: Mallow (Malvaceae).

Other Names: Apricot Mallow.

Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)

Plant Form: Many upright branches from the base.

Height: To 3-4 feet.

Stems: Upright, many stems from base. Stems covered with dense, fine gray hairs (canescent).

Leaves: About 1-2 inches long, triangular, 3-lobed (not deeply divided), wavy. Leaves covered with dense, fine gray hairs (canescent).

Flowers: Blooms in the spring, and then again as late as late November if conditions permit. Inflorescence: flowers arise along upper stems. Flower orange (apricot), radial; petals 5; stamens many, pistil 1. Petals overlap to form a globe-shaped flower.

Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)

Seeds: Fruit segmented, two seeds per segment.

Habitat: Desert scrub.

Elevation: About 500 to 8,000 feet.

Distribution: Southwestern U.S. including California, Nevada, Utah, and Arizona.

Comments: Inconspicuous most of the year, desert globemallow covers the desert with orange flowers during the spring bloom.

Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
After a desert wildfire, Desert Globemallow can be spectacular
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
After a desert wildfire, Desert Globemallow can be spectacular
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua) Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua) Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua) Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Top of leaf: leaf covered with dense, fine gray hairs
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Bottom of leaf: note aphids hiding under the leaf
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Top of leaf: leaf covered with dense, fine gray hairs
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Bottom of leaf
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Stem covered with dense, fine gray hairs
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Stem details: stellate (star-shaped) hairs
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua) Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua) Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua) Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua) Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Flowers are orange and radial, with a clump of stamens in the center
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Sepals, like the rest of the plant, covered with dense, fine hairs
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua) Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Dried flowerheads (loculicidal fruit capsules)
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Fruit capsules with black seeds
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Fruit capsule with black seeds
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Empty fruit capsule (seeds have scattered)
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow on a winter landscape
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow stems with dried flowers during winter
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow during late winter: leaves beginning to sprout
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow during late winter: leaves beginning to sprout
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow during late winter: leaves beginning to sprout
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
Desert Globemallow during late winter: leaves beginning to sprout
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
During late winter, leaves sprout from the base
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
During late winter, leaves sprout from the base
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
During early spring, flower emerge alongside old stems
Desert Globemallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua)
During early spring, flower emerge alongside old stems

Note: All distances, elevations, and other facts are approximate. Names generally follow the USDA database.
copyright; Last updated 240629

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