Baja California Hybrid Liveforever

Because this is a very diverse and polymorphic species, this description serves as a generalization of the common features. See the taxonomy section for descriptions on the morphology of each subspecies. The caudex is erect to sprawling, 3 to 15 mm thick, growing up to 30 cm long or more, branching to form clumps 10 to 40 cm wide, often covered in dried leaves. Rosettes are 2 to 5 cm wide, of 5 to 20 erect leaves. Leaves are farinose, linear to linear-oblanceolate, acute, terete, 2 to 10 cm long, 2 to 5 mm wide, with the base lenticular to suborbicular or oval 5 to 15 mm wide, 2 to 4 mm high, but sometimes higher than wide. Peduncles are 5 to 30 cm tall, 1 to 3 mm thick, leafy to within 1 to 4 cm of the base. The 5 to 15 bracts on the stem are ascending, linear-lanceolate to deltate-ovate, acute, with the lowermost 0.5 to 8 cm long and 2 to 5 mm wide. Higher on the inflorescence, it is composed of 1 to 3 simple branches 2 to 15 cm long, with 3 to 15 erect flowers mounted on pedicels 0.5 to 3 mm long. On the flower, the calyx is 3 to 6 mm wide, 2 to 5 mm high, segmented into deltate-ovate sepals with an acute tip, 1.5 to 4 mm long, 1 to 2 mm wide. The corolla is cream, white or pinkish, with the keel finely marked in red. Petals are 5 to 11 mm long, 1.5 to 4 mm wide. Concerning the stamens, filaments are 3.5 to 11 mm long, and the anthers are red to yellow, 1 to 2 mm long. …

D. attenuata is nearly endemic to Baja California with the exception of a population north of the border in San Diego County, California, at the Border Field State Park. It is also occurrent offshore on the Coronado Islands and the Isla Todos Santos. It can be found on coastal bluffs, typically below 165 ft.