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Sidalcea acuta

Common name:		Family:	Malvaceae
Author:	Burm.	Botanical references:	158
Synonyms:	Sida carpinifolia (L.f.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	E. Asia - Himalayas.
Habitat:	Waste ground and scrub forest in Uttar Pradesh[158].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	1	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	1

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	Sida acuta[B,E,G,P] Sida acuta ssp. carpinifolia[B,P] Sida acuta var. carpinifolia[B,P]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Common Wireweed [P], Common-wireweed [B], Escobita [E], Guimauve A Petites Fleurs [E], Petit Lalo [E], Seleguri [E],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	acuta = sharpened to a point
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Malvales. Mallow family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Africa Dominican Republic Ghana Guam Guatemala Haiti India Indochina Malacca Mexico Panama(Cuna) Philippines Trinidad

Physical Characteristics

Perennial. . The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. We rate it 1/5 for edibility and 1/5 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.

Edible Uses

Leaves.

One report says that the plant is sometimes used as food[177], but gives no more information. It is most likely that the leaves are used, though the flowers, mature and immature seeds should also be edible[K].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Miscellany.

One report says that the plant has medicinal uses[158], but gives no details[K].

Other Uses

Fibre.

A fibre is obtained from the stem[158].

Cultivation details

We have very little information on this species and do not know if it will be hardy in Britain. However, judging by its native range, it is possibly hardy outdoors at least in the milder areas of the country. The following notes are based on the general needs of the genus.
Prefers a deep fertile well-drained but moisture-retentive soil in full sun or with some shade at the hottest part of the day[200].

Propagation

Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse. When the seedlings are large enough to handle, prick them out into individual pots and plant them out in the summer.
Division in the spring.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

References for Sida acuta (a possible synonym).

[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.
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.

References for the family Malvaceae.

[CHINA] Draft Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[158] Gupta. B. L. Forest Flora of Chakrata, Dehra Dun and Saharanpur. Forest Research Institute Press 1945
A good flora for the middle Himalayan forests, sparsly illustrated. Not really for the casual reader.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[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.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
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?Sidalcea+acuta
This page (US) http://www.ibiblio.org/pfaf/cgi-bin/arr_html?Sidalcea+acuta

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