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Malva pusilla
| Common name: |
Dwarf Mallow |
Family: |
Malvaceae |
| Author: |
Sm. |
Botanical references: |
17, 74 |
| Synonyms: |
Malva rotundifolia (L.) |
| 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[76]. The leaves are perfectly wholesome at all other times. |
| Range: |
Europe. Introduced and locally naturalized in Britain. |
| Habitat: |
Waste places, foreshores etc[17]. |
| Edibility Rating (1-5): |
4 | Medicinal Rating (1-5): | 2 |
| Other Possible Synonyms: | From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below. |
| M. borealis[G]
M. neglecta[B,CPHOTO,CAL,CAL,,DUTCH,E,G,H,HPIC,HORTIPLEX,L,Smap,Sn4,P]
M. pusilla auct. non[P]
M. rotundifolia auct. non[P]
|
| Other Common Names: | From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below. |
| Cheeses [L], Common Mallow [E,P,L], Common Mallow, Malvas [S], Common Mallow? [L], Dwarf Mallow [H,B,L], Guimauve [E], Hai-Aoi [E], Kass Pappeln [E], Khubbaizah [E], Klein Kaasjeskruid [D], Mallow,Round [E], Malva [E], Penjer [E], Rond Kaasjeskruid [D], Small Mallow [L], |
| Epithets: | From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets |
|
pusilla = very small
|
| Systematics: | From a USDA Plants Database |
|
Order: Malvales. Mallow family
|
| Other Range Info: |
From the Ethnobotany Database |
|
Argentina
Europe France Germany Haiti Iraq Turkey Us
|
Physical Characteristics
Annual growing to 0.3m. It is hardy to zone 6 and is not frost tender. It is in flower from June to September, and the seeds ripen from August to October. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects.
The plant is self-fertile.
We rate it 4/5 for edibility and
2/5 for medicinal use.
The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil.
The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils.
It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade.
It requires moist soil.
The plant can tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure.
Habitats and Possible Locations
Cultivated Beds.Edible Uses
Leaves
Seed.
Leaves - raw or cooked[74, 145]. 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[74, 105]. 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 Uses
Disclaimer
Demulcent
Poultice.
The leaves are demulcent and have occasionally been used internally in
the treatment of inflammations of the digestive and urinary systems[4].
Externally they have been used as a poultice for bruises, inflammations,
piles etc[4, 240]. This plant is less active than the common mallow (M.
sylvestris) and the marsh mallow (Althaea officinalis)[4].
The seed is demulcent[240]. It is used in the treatment of coughs,
bronchitis, ulceration of the bladder and haemorrhoids[240]. It is applied
externally in the treatment of skin diseases[240].
Other Uses
Dye
Teeth.
Cream, yellow and green dyes can be obtained from the plant and the
seed heads[168].
The root can be used as a toothbrush[74].
Cultivation details
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[200].
This plant has been extensively cultivated as a pot-herb in some
countries[4].
Plants seem to be immune to the predations of rabbits[233].
Plants are prone to infestation by rust fungus[200].
Propagation
Seed - sow early spring in situ. Germination should take place within 2
weeks.
Suppliers
For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.
Web References
References for Malva neglecta (a possible synonym).
- [H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
- [E] Ethnobotany Data
(common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
- [B] Data
(Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
- [S] SW USA Dist. Maps
from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
- [S] Image
from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
- [G] Data
(Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
- [C] Taxon data.
from the CalFlora database.
- Images
from the CalPhoto database.
- [PHARM] Phytochemical Data
(common names, uses, countries) from Dr Duke's Phytochemical Database.
- [P] Data.
(uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
- [HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database
References for Malva rotundifolia (a possible synonym).
References for malva neglecta (a possible synonym).
References for the family Malvaceae.
See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.
Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.
[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.
[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).
[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.
[17] Clapham, Tootin and Warburg. Flora of the British Isles. Cambridge University Press 1962
A very comprehensive flora, the standard reference book but it has no pictures.
[74] Komarov. V. L. Flora of the USSR. Israel Program for Scientific Translation 1968
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers.
[76] Cooper. M. and Johnson. A. Poisonous Plants in Britain and their Effects on Animals and Man. HMSO 1984 ISBN 0112425291
Concentrates mainly on the effects of poisonous plants to livestock.
[105] Tanaka. T. Tanaka's Cyclopaedia of Edible Plants of the World. Keigaku Publishing 1976
The most comprehensive guide to edible plants I've come across. Only the briefest entry for each species, though, and some of the entries are more than a little dubious. Not for the casual reader.
[145] Singh. Dr. G. and Kachroo. Prof. Dr. P. Forest Flora of Srinagar. Bishen Singh Mahendra Pal Singh 1976
A good flora of the western Himalayas but poorly illustrated. Some information on plant uses.
[168] Grae. I. Nature's Colors - Dyes from Plants. MacMillan Publishing Co. New York. 1974 ISBN 0-02-544950-8
A very good and readable book on dyeing.
[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
[233] Thomas. G. S. Perennial Garden Plants J. M. Dent & Sons, London. 1990 ISBN 0 460 86048 8
A concise guide to a wide range of perennials. Lots of cultivation guides, very little on plant uses.
[240] Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986
Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.
Readers Comments
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Plant information taken from the
Plants For A Future -
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Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963 This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Malva+pusilla
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