Cercocarpus ledifolius var. intricatus

Cercocarpus intricatus is a species of flowering plant known by the common name littleleaf mountain mahogany. It is native to the southwestern United States from California to Colorado, where it grows in mostly dry habitat such as desert, mountain slopes, plateau, and woodland. It is a thickly branched shrub spreading and growing erect to heights between one and three meters. The many short gray twigs on the branches bear tiny, widely spaced evergreen leaves. Each thick, short leaf is a centimeter long or less, rolled under at the edges, and leathery in texture. The flower cluster has two or three flowers. Each flower is a tiny cup just a few millimeters wide containing several protruding stamens and one pistil. The style remains after the rest of the flower falls away. It is feathery and up to 2 centimeters long, with the fruit, an achene, at the tip.