Abronia villosa

Life-forms

Classification System: APG IV

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Regnum: Plantae
Cladus: Angiosperms
Cladus: Eudicots
Cladus: Core eudicots
Ordo: Caryophyllales

Familia: Nyctaginaceae
Tribus: Nyctagineae
Genus: Abronia
Species: Abronia villosa
Name

Abronia villosa S. Wats.
References

American Naturalist; a Popular Illustrated Magazine of Natural History. Boston, MA 7:302. 1873
USDA, ARS, Germplasm Resources Information Network. Abronia villosa in the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN), U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service. Accessed: 08-Apr-12.

Vernacular names
English: Desert sand-verbena

Abronia villosa is a species of sand-verbena known by the common names desert sand-verbena[1] and chaparral sand-verbena. It is in the four o'clock plant family (Nyctaginaceae). It is native to sandy areas in the deserts of the southwestern United States and northern Mexico, associated with creosote-bush and coastal-sage scrub habitats.[2]

Description

Abronia villosa is a short, hairy annual wildflower[2] which grows in creeping prostrate masses along the ground. It has oval-shaped dull green leaves and many peduncles bearing rounded inflorescences of bright magenta or purplish-pink flowers. It grows in the sand of the deserts and coastlines. It has a very sweet fragrance, and is also very sticky. They usually grow between February and May.
Chemistry

The rotenoids abronione and boeravinone C, and the terpenoid lupeol can be found in A. villosa.[3]
References

USDA Plants Profile of Abronia villosa
Jepson Manual Treatment — Abronia villosa

Starks, CM; Williams, RB; Norman, VL; Lawrence, JA; Goering, MG; O'Neil-Johnson, M; Hu, JF; Rice, SM; Eldridge, GR (2011). "Abronione, a rotenoid from the desert annual Abronia villosa". Phytochemistry Letters. 4 (2): 72–74. doi:10.1016/j.phytol.2010.08.004. PMC 3099468. PMID 21617767.

Further reading
Drennan, P.M. (May 2008). "Sand verbenas (Abronia spp., Nyctaginaceae) germinate in response to ethylene". Journal of Arid Environments. 72 (5): 847–852. doi:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2007.11.002.