Scientific Name: Mirabilis multiflora
Common Name: Desert Four O’Clock, Colorado Four O’Clock
Family: Nyctaginaceae, Four O’clock Family
Duration: Perennial
Size: Up to 18 inches or more and 2 or 3 feet wide.
Growth Form: Forb/herb, subshrub; bushy, stems erect to ascending.
Leaves: Green, dark green; rounded to ovate, glandular hairy or becoming glabrous.
Flower Color: Magenta-purple, brilliant deep pink; showy "flowers", inflorescence a long thin stem, "flowers" or perianth from cups, up to 6 flowers per involucre cup originating from leaf axils, flowers close early in the day and re-open in the evening, "flowers" bell- funnel- or trumpet-shaped, fruit elliptical.
Flowering Season: April to September.
Comments: Colorado Four O'clock is a stunning plant to encounter in natural habitat with its brilliant flowers and dark green leaves. The root of this long-lived perennial can get quite large—in older specimens the circumference can be up to a foot or more.
