Herbaceous, upright subshrub, woody at the base. Single/multiple long stems, sparsely leaved and coated with soft, woolly, short, downward facing (retrorse) hairs and star-like hair clusters.
Stems erect with downward facing simple and star-like clustered hairs, hairs <1/4 inch long; leaf blades 2-1/2 inches long; flowers solitary, petals to 1/2 inch long, yellowish-orange and without a red center; seeds 3 per ovary, styles 6 to 8 branched.
Habitat
Dry areas among rocks and boulders, on the lower slopes and ledges of canyons and hillsides, at the bases of mountains and cliffs.
Flower Characteristics
Solitary flowers have 5 petals, to 1/2 inch long emerging from leaf axils (between the leaf and the stem) on very short (up to 3/4 inch) stalks (pedicels). Flowers open only in sunny conditions for a few hours in the late afternoon to evening.
Leaf and Stem Characteristics
Oval to triangular to heart-shaped leaves are velvety, 2-1/2 inches long with a distinctly tapered point. Leaves are dark green on top with flat, forked hairs, paler to whitish below with short, soft hairs in star-like clusters.
Fruit and Seed Characteristics
Disc-shaped fruit, 3/8 inch long and has 6 to 8 sections each containing 3 seeds. Each section has a spiny tip (spine about 1/16 inch) and a fringe of tiny, star-like, soft hairs along the margin of a lengthwise ridge.
Seeds are about 1/8 inch and minutely roughened. They do not germinate easily. Older seeds are more likely to germinate than newer. The fruits open and release seeds in June and again after summer rains.