Sidalcea neomexicana

Sidalcea neomexicana is a species of flowering plant in the mallow family known by the common names salt spring checkerbloom,^[3] Rocky Mountain checker-mallow, and New Mexico checker.

Sidalcea neomexicana
Conservation status
Apparently Secure  (NatureServe)[1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Rosids
Order:	Malvales
Family:	Malvaceae
Genus:	Sidalcea
Species:	S. neomexicana
Binomial name
Sidalcea neomexicana A.Gray
Synonyms[2]
Sidalcea confinis Greene Sidalcea crenulata A.Nelson Sidalcea parviflora Greene

Description

Sidalcea neomexicana is a perennial herb growing from a cluster of fleshy roots, the mostly hairless stem growing 20 to 90 centimeters tall.^[4]

The fleshy leaves are sometimes divided shallowly to deeply into lobes.

The inflorescence is a loose cluster of flowers with pink petals up to 2 centimeters long.^[4]

Sidalcea neomexicana seeds

Distribution and habitat

The plant is native to the Western United States and northern Mexico. It can be found in a diverse number of habitat types, including chaparral and coastal sage scrub, Yellow Pine Forest and riparian zones, Creosote bush scrub, and alkali flats and other salty substrates.^[5]