Vervain mallow (Malva alcea)

Description: Introduced to North America as an ornamental.

Habit: Perennial, ranges from 1 1/2-3 1/2 in tall that branches occasionally, clump forming.

Leaves: 1 1/2 - 3 1/4 in long and similarly across, palmately lobed (3-7 primary lobes each), lobes are irregularly pinnatifid and dentate, moderately deep primary lobes and more shallow for secondary. Yellowish-green to dark green and glabrous in color on upper side; while lower leaf is light green and glabrous to slightly pubescent.

Stems: Light green; angular or terete; glabrous to slightly pubescent; alternate leaves up the stem.

Flowers: 3.5-6 cm diameter, 5 sepals, 5 bright pink petals, no scent.

Fruit and seeds: Hairless disc-shaped schizocarp 4-8 mm diameter, containing several seeds, the seeds individually enclosed in a glabrous or hairy mericarp.

Habitat: Native to Europe. Found along roadsides, railroads, fields, gardens, and on disturbed ground. Prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil.

Reproduction: By seed.

Similar species: Musk Mallow (Malva moschata).

Monitoring and rapid response: Effectively controlled using any of several readily available general use herbicides such as glyphosate.

Credits: The information provided in this factsheet was gathered from Illinoiswildflowers.info, Michigan Flora and the USDA PLANTS Database.

Individual species images that appear with a number in a black box are courtesy of the Bugwood.org network (http://www.invasive.org).Individual photo author credits may not be included due to the small display size of the images and subsequent difficulty of reading the provided text. All other images appear courtesy of Google (http://images.google.com).

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