Eriogonum deflexum  Skeleton Weed
ANNUAL.  The many-branched flowerstalk rises from a rosette of fuzzy round bluish-green leaves.  Small white flowers with red stripes are solitary and hang upside down.  Blooms in April-May but stem may dry out and persist even after the leaves wither, hence the common name.  In the Empires, uncommon on bajadas and gentle slopes in dry gravel.
FAMILY:  Polygonaceae (Buckwheat Family)