Malva pusilla
| Malva pusilla | |
| Light: |   |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 6 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Self Pollinated | |
| Height: | 1' |
| Blooms: | Early Summer-Early Fall |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
 | |
Malva pusilla (common name: dwarf mallow)
Propagation: Seed - sow early spring in situ. Germination should take place within 2 weeks.
Cultivation: A very easily grown plant, succeeding in ordinary garden soil[1], though it prefers a reasonably well-drained and moderately fertile soil in a sunny position[2].
This plant has been extensively cultivated as a pot-herb in some countries[3].
Plants seem to be immune to the predations of rabbits[4].
Plants are prone to infestation by rust fungus[2].
Range: Europe. Introduced and locally naturalized in Britain.
Habitat: Waste places, foreshores etc[5].
Edibility: Leaves - raw or cooked[6][7]. A mild pleasant flavour, it can be used in quantity and makes an excellent salad plant. It is possibly the best for flavour in this genus though it is much lower yielding than the annual M. verticillata 'Crispa' or the perennials M. alcea and M. moschata[K].
Seed - raw or cooked[6][8]. Best used before it is fully mature, the seed has a pleasant nutty taste but it is rather small and very fiddly to harvest[K].
Medicinal: The leaves are demulcent and have occasionally been used internally in the treatment of inflammations of the digestive and urinary systems[3]. Externally they have been used as a poultice for bruises, inflammations, piles etc[3][9]. This plant is less active than the common mallow (M. sylvestris) and the marsh mallow (Althaea officinalis)[3].
The seed is demulcent[9]. It is used in the treatment of coughs, bronchitis, ulceration of the bladder and haemorrhoids[9]. It is applied externally in the treatment of skin diseases[9].
Usage: Cream, yellow and green dyes can be obtained from the plant and the seed heads[10].
The root can be used as a toothbrush[6].
Pollinators: Insects, self
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Wind: Tolerates strong winds
Seed Ripens: Late Summer-Mid Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Known Hazards: Although we have seen no reports of toxicity for this species, when grown on nitrogen rich soils (and particularly when these are cultivated inorganically), the leaves of some species tend to concentrate high levels of nitrates in their leaves[11]. The le
Also Known As: M. rotundifolia. L.
Links
References
- ↑ Chittendon, Fred. RHS Dictionary of Plants. Oxford University Press, 1951.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Grieve, Margaret. A Modern Herbal. Penguin, 1984.
- ↑ Thomas, Graham. Perennial Garden Plants. J. M. Dent & Sons, 1990.
- ↑ Clapham, Arthur and Tom Tootin, Edmund Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press, 1962.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Komarov, Vladimir. Flora of the USSR. Gantner Verlag, 1968.
- ↑ Singh, Gurcharan and Premnath Kachroo. Forest Flora of Srinagar. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh, 1976.
- ↑ Tanaka, Tyōzaburō. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing, 1976.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Chopra, R. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants. Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi, 1986.
- ↑ Grae, Ida. Nature's Colors. MacMillan Publishing, 1974.
- ↑ Cooper, Marion. Poisonous Plants in Britain and their Effects on Animals and Man. The Stationery Office, 1984.