''Herissantia crispa'' is a species of flowering plant in the
mallow family known by the common names bladdermallow and curly abutilon. It is native to the tropical Americas but it can be found throughout the tropical and warmer temperate world as an
introduced species
An introduced species, alien species, exotic species, adventive species, immigrant species, foreign species, non-indigenous species, or non-native species is a species living outside its native distributional range, but which has arrived ther ...
and sometimes a
weed
A weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, "a plant in the wrong place", or a plant growing where it is not wanted.Harlan, J. R., & deWet, J. M. (1965). Some thoughts about weeds. ''Economic botany'', ''19''(1), 16-24. ...
. This is a perennial or sometimes annual herb growing up to about 1.5 meters in maximum stem length, usually taking a trailing or creeping form. It is coated in whitish hairs. The oval or heart-shaped leaves are up to 7 centimeters long with rippled edges. The
inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...
is a solitary flower emerging from a leaf axil, borne on a long-haired
pedicel
Pedicle or pedicel may refer to:
Human anatomy
*Pedicle of vertebral arch, the segment between the transverse process and the vertebral body, and is often used as a radiographic marker and entry point in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty procedures
...
which is half erect and then jointed downward. The flower has five pale yellow oval petals each up to a centimeter long. The fruit is a
lantern-like inflated sphere ribbed into segments. It is up to 2 centimeters wide, coated in long hairs, and
dehiscent, each segment containing 2 or 3 black kidney-shaped seeds.
External links
Jepson Manual TreatmentUSDA Plants ProfileFlora of ChinaFlora of Western AustraliaPhoto gallery
Malveae
{{Malveae-stub