Data provided by the participants of the Consortium of California Herbaria

View additional distribution information on the Jepson eflora

Encelia actoni, also known by the common names Acton brittlebush and Acton encelia, is a species of flowering plant in the daisy family. It is sometimes misspelled E. actonii. The plant is native to California and Nevada in the U. S. and Baja California in Mexico. It grows in various types of open habitat, including deserts, chaparral, and grasslands. It is found in the Mojave Desert, Sonoran Deserts, Peninsular Ranges, Transverse Ranges, San Joaquin Valley, and southern Sierra Nevada. The species was named for the community of Acton in Southern California, located in an ecotone of the Mojave Desert ecoregion and of the montane chaparral and woodlands in the San Gabriel Mountains. Encelia actoni is cultivated as an ornamental plant for drought tolerant and wildlife gardens, natural landscaping design, and habitat restoration projects. It needs sun and after the first summer, very limited to no supplemental irrigation.

Plant type

Shrub

Size

5 ft Tall

Calscape icon
Color

Yellow

Flowering season

Winter, Spring, Summer

Sun

Full Sun

Water

Low, Very Low

Ease of care

Moderate

Soil drainage

Fast

Soil description

Prefers sandy or decomposed granite soil.

Sunset Zones

7, 8*, 9*, 10, 11*, 12, 13, 14*, 15, 16, 18, 19*, 20*, 21*, 22, 23, 24

Site type

Open, rocky slopes,

Bees
Caterpillars
Butterflies

Butterflies and moths supported

0 confirmed and 3 likely

Confirmed Likely

Orange Tortrix Moth

Argyrotaenia franciscana

Fatal Metalmark

Calephelis nemesis

Dwarf Tawny Wave

Cyclophora nanaria