Selected Plants of Navajo Rangelands

Diné bikéyah Chi’l nooséłígíí Bąąhą́ą́nosin
Take care of our Navajo Rangelands

Globemallow
Azeenitł’inii
(a.k.a. Scarlet globemallow)

Growth habit with full basal leaves and upright stems containing flowers
Patrick Alexander

Globemallow, a perennial, native forb that grows up to 2 1/2 feet tall. It is commonly eaten by almost all species of herbivores and is an important part of the diets of small mammals, pronghorn, sheep, and cattle.

Scarlet globemallow grows mainly in dry grassland prairies at elevations of 3,500 to 9,000 feet. It is considerably drought resistant and establishes well on disturbed sites. It loses its leaves during times of drought and may actually increase in size in times of drought and overgrazing. Traditional uses include applying the paste to burns, scalds, and external sores as a cooling agent.

It flowers April to August, and reproduces from seeds. Petals are deep orange or brick red to pinkish.

*Description courtesy of Utah State University Range Plants of Utah.

Bud just beginning to open. Red-orange petals are peeking out of fuzzy, green sepals.
Patrick Alexander
Open blossom with five red-orange petals that are yellow toward the center of the flower.
Patrick Alexander
Growth habit in dry, brushy area
Gerald Moore
Arrangement of flowers along the otherwise bare stalk
Gerald Moore
Open blossom with five red-orange petals that are yellow toward the center of the flower.
Gerald Moore
Glowers clustered
Renee Benally
Sphaeralcea_spp
Close-up of green foliage with orange flower growing on a substrate of small rocks
Nick Ashcroft
Sphaeralcea coccinea
Close-up of green foliage and small orange flowers close together.
Nick Ashcroft
Sphaeralcea coccinea
Scientific Name
Sphaeralcea spp.
Plant Type
Forb
Growing Season
Cool Season
Habitat
Grasslands
Flower Color
Red/Pink
✓
Wildlife and livestock forage
For definitions, see the glossary.

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