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bala, country mallow, flannel weed, great-leaf sida, heart-leaf sida, ilima

Virginia fanpetals, Virginia mallow

Habit Subshrubs or shrubs, to 1.5 m. Herbs, perennial, 1–2.5(–5) m.
Stems

erect, stellate-tomentose.

erect, minutely stellate-hairy when young, soon glabrate.

Leaves

stipules free from petiole, 1-veined, linear, 5–8 mm, shorter than petiole;

petiole 10–25 mm, to 1/2 length of blade, stellate-tomentose;

blade broadly cordate to ovate-lanceolate, to 6 cm, reduced distally, 1–2 times longer than wide, base cordate, margins dentate to base, apex acute, surfaces softly velvety-tomentose.

stipules free from petiole, linear-lanceolate, 3–4 mm, shorter than petiole;

petiole to 0.9 mm, shorter than blade, glabrous;

blade palmately 5–7-lobed, maplelike, to 24 cm, ± as long as wide, smaller upward, base cordate, margins serrate, apex long-acuminate, surfaces glabrous.

Inflorescences

axillary, usually subsessile, crowded panicles or corymbs, sometimes solitary flowers.

axillary, subumbellate, 2–10-flowered pedunculate corymbs, forming terminal panicles.

Pedicels

0.2–0.4 cm, enlarging slightly in fruit, shorter than calyx.

Flowers

calyx prominently ribbed, 6–7 mm, densely stellate-tomentose, lobes ovate;

petals yellow-orange, often with darker reddish base, 8–11 mm;

staminal column hairy;

style 8–14-branched.

calyx dark-pigmented basally, unribbed, not angulate, 4–5 mm, minutely stellate-hairy, lobes wide-triangular;

petals white, 8–10 mm;

staminal column hairy;

style 8-branched.

Schizocarps

oblate-conic, 6–7 mm diam., apically hairy;

mericarps 8–14, 4–5 mm, dorsally smooth, apex spined, spines to 2 mm, retrorsely barbed (variably developed, rarely suppressed).

subconic, 6–8 mm diam., minutely stellate-hairy;

mericarps 8, not reticulate, apex beaked.

2n

= 28.

= 28.

Sida cordifolia

Sida hermaphrodita

Phenology Flowering year-round. Flowering late summer.
Habitat Disturbed sites, savannas, open shrublands, pinelands Along streams, roadsides, railroad embankments, disturbed sites
Elevation 0–300 m (0–1000 ft) 50–200 m (200–700 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; FL; TX; Asia [Introduced in North America; introduced also in Mexico, West Indies, Central America, South America, Africa, Australia]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
DC; IN; KY; MD; MI; OH; PA; VA; WV; ON
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

A velvety-tomentose herb sometimes used in herbal medicines, Sida cordifolia is believed to have originated in India, but has been widely spread in warmer regions globally. In many areas it is considered to be an invasive weed. There is considerable variation in the flower color patterns; the velvety-tomentose indument and retrorsely barbed, relatively large or conspicuous spines can help in identification.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Some occurrences of Sida hermaphrodita may be the result of escapes from cultivation. It is generally rare except locally common along the Kanawha and Ohio rivers in Ohio and West Virginia (D. M. Spooner et al. 1985); it has been extirpated from Tennessee. Reports from Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York refer to garden escapes. The species may or may not be native in Michigan.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 6, p. 313. FNA vol. 6, p. 315.
Parent taxa Malvaceae > subfam. Malvoideae > Sida Malvaceae > subfam. Malvoideae > Sida
Sibling taxa
S. abutilifolia, S. antillensis, S. ciliaris, S. elliottii, S. glabra, S. hermaphrodita, S. lindheimeri, S. littoralis, S. longipes, S. neomexicana, S. planicaulis, S. rhombifolia, S. rubromarginata, S. santaremensis, S. spinosa, S. tragiifolia, S. ulmifolia, S. urens
S. abutilifolia, S. antillensis, S. ciliaris, S. cordifolia, S. elliottii, S. glabra, S. lindheimeri, S. littoralis, S. longipes, S. neomexicana, S. planicaulis, S. rhombifolia, S. rubromarginata, S. santaremensis, S. spinosa, S. tragiifolia, S. ulmifolia, S. urens
Synonyms S. althaeifolia, S. pellita Napaea hermaphrodita
Name authority Linnaeus: Sp. Pl. 2: 684. (1753) (Linnaeus) Rusby: Mem. Torrey Bot. Club 5: 223. (1894)
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