Abutilon malacum

Plant: Subshrub; to 1 m tall, stellate-tomentulose Leaves: broadly ovate, mostly 3-7 cm long, sharply serrate INFLORESCENCE: compact panicle Flowers: calyx 6-8 mm long; petals 9-15 mm long; staminal column 3-4 mm long, pallid; styles 5 Fruit: a schizocarp, more or less cylindrical, 6-7 mm long, 7-9 mm diameter, coarsely stellate-pubescent; mericarps 5, apically acute, 3-seeded. SEEDS 2 mm long Misc: In open arid habitats; 550-900 m (1800-3100 ft); flowering throughout the year REFERENCES: Fryxell, Paul A. 1994. Malvaceae. J. Ariz. - Nev. Acad. Sci. Volume 27(2), 222-236.

Fryxell 1993

Duration: Perennial Nativity: Native Lifeform: Subshrub General: Herbaceous perennials, to 1 m tall, stems erect, herbage bluish-green, (tomentulose) covered with short, matted or tangled, soft, wooly, stellate-tipped hairs. Leaves: Alternate, broadly ovate, mostly 3-7 cm long, with cordate bases and sharply serrate margins, surfaces bluish-green. Flowers: Yellow, with 5 flattened and rounded petals 9-15 mm long, calyx 6-8 mm long, staminal column 3-4 mm long, pallid, styles 5, flowers borne in compact panicles. Fruits: Cylindrical schizocarps 6-7 mm long and 7-9 mm diameter, with coarsely stellate-pubescent surfaces and 5 apically acute mericarps (sections). Seeds 3 per mericarp, 2 mm long. Ecology: Found in open and arid habitats, from 2,000-3,000 ft (610-914 m); flowering throughout the year. Distribution: Arizona, New Mexico, Texas. Notes: This species is a subshrub with bluish-green, heart-shaped leaves with toothy margins and flowers with 5 small, rounded petals and exserted yellow stamen column with yellow anthers, as well as 5 exserted styles (these exserted beyond the stamen column). Ethnobotany: Specific uses for this species are unknown, but other species in the genus have uses. Etymology: Abutilon from the Arabic word for a mallow-like plant, and malacum likely means soft. Synonyms: None Editor: LCrumbacher, 2012