The Genus Desmanthus
Family: Fabaceae
Colloquially known as bundleflowers, species native to Mexico and North, Central and South America—there are 26 species. Arizona has 5 species.
These are herbaceous perennial plants that stay very low and have a diversity of flowers. They are generally extremely hardy, growing in the mountains of our Sky Islands region. Low growing plants, they rarely reach over a foot tall and deciduous. They bloom in the warm season. Most species are larval hosts for species of blue butterflies like the marine blue (Leptotes marina) and the ceraunus blue (Hemiargus ceraunus).
Most of our species are native to Arizona on dry slopes from 3,500-7,500 ft.
Plant in full to part sun, avoid reflective heat. Moderate water with good drainage. The cold tolerance of these species aren’t exactly known, but they are all pretty cold tolerant, most of them native into higher elevations.
Coville's Bundleflower (Desmanthus covillei), a rarer species only found in a few spots in southern Arizona. Photo by Salvador Jauregui, iNaturalist
The shrubbier Two-horn Bundleflower (Desmanthus bicornutus), this species typically dies back to its base during winter or dry season and refoliates when conditions become favorable again. Photo by James Bailey, iNaturalist
Cooley's Bundleflower (Desmanthus cooleyi) has yellow to pink flowers. Photo by Nathan Taylor, iNaturalist