A N F Keys
1 Evergreen shrub with opposite decussate, leathery leaves; blades elliptic to lanceolate, 30−85 × 6−16 mm; flowers solitary and terminal, 65−85 mm across; petals white with thick yellowish base and generally a maroon spot; stamens many .. Cistus ladanifer [pics]
1' Subshrub with photosynthetic stems and helically alternate leaves; blades linear, 5−20(−40) × 0.5−1.5(−6) mm; flowers in cymes (paniclelike), 7−12 across; petals bright yellow; stamens 10 or 15 .. Helianthemum scoparium [pics]
NB. Rose-flowered species and selections of Cistus are widely cultivated in range, and it is difficult to determine where plants have become establish on their own.
The text of the above keys used with permission from
A Naturalist's Flora of the Santa Monica Mountains and Simi Hills, California
© Copyright
Barry A. Prigge and Arthur C. Gibson
2013