Taxon Report

Malacothamnus eastwoodiae K. Morse

Alice's lovely bushmallow

Print Report

Taxon Summary

Malacothamnus eastwoodiae, commonly known as Alice's lovely bushmallow, is a perennial deciduous shrub in the Malvaceae that is found only in California. It occurs within Chaparral (maritime), Coastal scrub, and Riparian woodland, growing at elevations from 25 to 130 meters. Malacothamnus eastwoodiae is ranked 1B.1, Plants Rare, Threatened or Endangered in California and Elsewhere; Seriously threatened in California.

Classification


Scientific Name:	Malacothamnus eastwoodiae K. Morse
Common Name:	Alice's lovely bushmallow
Family:	Malvaceae
Element Code:	PDMAL0Q0Q0
USDA Plants Symbol:
Synonyms/Other Names:

Ecology and Life History


Lifeform:	perennial deciduous shrub
Blooming Period: May-Jun(Aug)	May-Jun(Aug)
Elevation:	25-130 (80-425)
General Habitats:	Chaparral, Coastal scrub, Riparian woodland
Microhabitat:	Edges, Sandy, Shale
Microhabitat Details:	Found in Burton Mesa maritime chaparral; many plants found on the edge between chaparral and more open areas.

Conservation Status


CA Rare Plant Rank:	1B.1
Global Rank:	G1
State Rank:	S1
State List:	None
Fed List:	None
Other Status:
CRPR Changes:	added to 1B.1 on 2024-05-09

Occurrence Data from the CNDDB


Total Occurrences:	5
Element Occurrence Ranks:
Excellent (A)	0
Good (B)	0
Fair (C)	0
Poor (D)	0
None (X)	0
Unknown (U)	5

Location


California Endemic: True
California Counties and Islands: Name (Code)
Santa Barbara (SBA)
Quads: Name (Quad Code)
Casmalia (3412075), Guadalupe (3412085), Lompoc (3412064), Surf (3412065)

Threat List Data from the CNDDB


Threat List Total:	0
EOs with Threat Listed:	Total EOs	% of EOs
	0	%

Notes




Threats:
Threatened by hybridization with M. nuttallii and possibly threatened by fire suppression, altered fire regimes, competition from invasive plants, and military activities.
Taxonomy:
One site has likely hybrids with M. nuttallii.

Selected References

Proposed addition to CRPR 1B.1, G1 / S1 (2024)

Malacothamnus Volume 2: 61–64 (2023)

Malacothamnus Volume 3 (2023)

Citation California Native Plant Society, Rare Plant Program. 2025. Rare Plant Inventory (online edition, v9.5.1). Website https://www.rareplants.cnps.org [accessed 24 October 2025].