Stats

Lifespan

Perennial

Size

Small

Diet

Photosynthetic

Biome

Desert

Range

North America

Movement

Sessile

Breeding

Seeds

Defense

Camouflage

Status

Common

About

A low-growing perennial shrub native to California's chaparral and coastal sage scrub, Wishbone Bush takes its name from its wiry, forking branches that resemble wishbones. Like other members of the four o'clock family, its small trumpet-shaped flowers open only in the late afternoon and evening.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   seed

   A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
2. 2.
   sprout

   A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
3. 3.
   sapling

   A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
4. 4.
   mature

   Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Plantae

Phylum

Tracheophyta

Class

Magnoliopsida

Order

Caryophyllales

Family

Nyctaginaceae

Genus

Mirabilis

Species

Mirabilis laevis