Stems erect, rarely prostrate, brittle, forming erect or rounded shrubs, branchlets evenly distributed around the branches. Leaves mostly 15-40 mm. 2n = 18.

Flowering Jul-Dec. Oak woodlands, coniferous forest openings, roadsides, coastal bluffs; 0-800 m; Calif., N.Mex., Oreg.; Mexico (Baja California).

Subspecies consanguinea is a dominant member of the California coastal sage scrub, and also occurs in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada and some of the Peninsular Ranges of southern California. The specimen reported from New Mexico is probably a waif or weedy introduction (voucher not seen).