The Plant List

Abutilon palmeri

Common: Superstition mallow, Palmer's Indian mallow
Family: Malvaceae
Origin: Native to Arizona, Sonora Mexico
Temperature: Hardy to 20 degrees
Light: Full sun to part shade. Tolerates reflected heat.
Water: Little water once established. Grows faster with more water.

Medium shrub, 3 to 6 feet tall, 3 to 5 feet in diameter.

Velvety heart-shaped leaves, silvery green, coarse texture.

Orange-yellow flowers appear spring to fall. Low litter, no thorns.

Under shady conditions it tends to have an open, sprawling growth habit, while it stays dense and rounded in full sun.

Desert mallow is native to dry, east facing slopes mainly below 2,500' in the low deserts of California and Arizona.