Plant Image
Plant - summer
Willow Dells Tr - Sue Smith


Yavapai County Native & Naturalized Plants

Mirabilis multiflora - Colorado four o'clock

Synonyms: Oxybaphus multiflorus
Other Common Names: desert four o'clock, wild four o'clock, maravilla, showy four o'clock
Plant Form: Forb or Subshrub

Family: Nyctaginaceae


   
 
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Flower
Willow Dells Tr
Sue Smith
Leaves
Willow Dells Tr
Sue Smith
Plant - summer
Willow Dells Tr
Sue Smith
Plant - summer
Willow Dells Tr
Sue Smith
Forb Plant Description

Origin: Native   Life Cycle: Perennial
General Desc: Perennial herb to subshrub, forming round clumps 2 to 3-1/2 feet in diameter; stems 15 to 24 inches long; diffusely branched; herbage without hairs or densely hairy.
Identification notes: 5-parted flowers, 1-1/2 to 2-1/2 inches long; 6 to 8 funnel-form flowers per whorl of bracts; fruit not strongly 5-angled.
Height: 1 to 3-1/2 feet


Habitat

Habitat Description: Common in open sandy areas among juniper and pinyon, extends from creosote flats of the low desert to chaparral and into ponderosa pine forests, roadsides, open sand areas and mesas.
Plant Communities: Desert Scrub, Interior Chaparral, Semidesert Grasslands, Pinyon Juniper Woodland, Montane Conifer Forest, Disturbed Areas
Elevation: 2500 - 6500 feet


Flower Characteristics

Color: Purple to pink     Shape: Regular in round clusters     Tubular: Y     Flowering Period: Apr - Sep
Description: Magenta-purple sepals, funnel-shaped with no true petals, to 2-1/2 inches wide. Flowers are in groups of 6 to 8 and in leaf axils and open in late afternoon and wither the next morning.


Leaf and Stem Characteristics

Leaf Color: Dark green     Leaf Type: Simple     Leaf Shape: Triangular     Leaf Margin: Smooth     Leaf Attachment: Opposite     Leaves Clasp: N
Hairs: Leaves and stems     Spines: N
Leaf Description: Leaves spreading; blades at mid-stem ovate to widely ovate, base rounded to heart-shaped, often asymmetric, tip of leaves pointed or not pointed, rarely rounded. Stems and leaves without hairs to densely hairy.


Fruit and Seed Characteristics

Fruit Color: Brown   
Fruit Type: Achene
Fruit Notes: Smooth or rough, ovate, 1/2 inch long, sometimes with tan and brown ribs.


  Arizona Cooperative Extension
Yavapai County
840 Rodeo Dr #C
Prescott, AZ 86305
(928) 445-6590
Version 8.0  
http://cales.arizona.edu/yavapaiplants/SpeciesDetailForb.php  
Last Updated: Dec 13, 2022
Content Questions/Comments: Email Matt Halldorson  
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