Data provided by the participants of the Consortium of California Herbaria

View additional distribution information on the Jepson eflora

Dudleya cymosa is a succulent plant known by the common name canyon live-forever. It is a distinctive plant sending up erect red-orange stems from a gray-green basal rosette. The small yellowish-red thimble-shaped flowers top the stems in large flower cluster. The plant is found in rocky areas in the low elevation mountains of California and southern Oregon. Some subspecies are considered threatened locally. Hummingbirds love this plant.

Plant type

Perennial herb, Succulent

Size

4 - 6 in Tall
4 - 6 in Wide

Form

Spreading

Growth rate

Fast

Dormancy

Evergreen

Fragrance

Pleasant

Calscape icon
Color

Orange, Red, Yellow, Brown

Flowering season

Spring, Summer

Special uses

Containers, Deer resistant

Sun

Partial Shade, Full Sun

Water

Low, Very Low

Summer irrigation

Never irrigate once established

Cold tolerance

Tolerates cold to -10 - 0° F

Soil drainage

Fast

Soil description

Rocky cliffs, steep clay slopes.
Soil PH: 6 - 8

Site type

Rocky outcrops, slopes, talus

Plant communities

Chaparral, Foothill Woodland, Northern Oak Woodland

A great plant for rock gardens with other small plants that won't overwhelm it, such as Yarrow (Achillea millefolium), Sea Pink (Armeria maritima), Clustered Field Sedge (Carex praegracilis), Sulphur Buckwheat (Eriogonum umbellatum), Wild Strawberry (Fragraria species), California Aster (Corethrogyne filaginifolia), Mints (Monardella spp.), Clinopodium species, Sisyrinchium species

Hummingbirds
Birds
Caterpillars
Butterflies

Butterflies and moths supported

1 confirmed and 2 likely

Confirmed Likely

Sonoran Blue

Philotes sonorensis

Orange Tortrix Moth

Argyrotaenia franciscana

Moss' Elfin

Callophrys mossii