Malva neglecta identification 2016
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| Malva neglecta one of many a yard weed~ |
Seed structures were key
to Malva neglecta identification. The
seed carpel are in a cheese wheel shape; usual for the typical yard weed. The
“wheels” can be broken by its sections. I counted the section of 4 wheels while
breaking them apart. See the link to the picture I have below in the text.
Wheel
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Compartments
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1
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14
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2
|
13
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3
|
14
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4
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14
|
I believe 14 seeds per
wheel is the consensus. Although one was found to be 13, maybe I lost a segment
or it was a malnourished or a deformed pod. Maybe they have variation. I took
measurements of the flower parts to help in identification.
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| Malva neglecta flower measured with a caliper. |
Flower 11.5 mm long
Sepal 8 mm long
Pedestal 17 mm long
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| Malva neglecta without any petals. |
I found a picture of the
seeds using internet searches of images searching for “cheese wheel seeds.”
That pointed to the genus Malva. From
there I consulted manuals and more specific image searches.
Gleason
Manual:
7 species. The Key:
Upper
lvs 5-7 divided to below the middle; pet 2-3.5 cm, erect perennials.
No Leaves are not divided. The
pet. Is 12 mm, not close to 2 cm.
-That
removes M. moschata – deeply divided leaves with a larger showy flower.
-That
removes M. alcea – deeply divided leaves, with a larger showy flower.
Upper lvs not divided like above and pet up
to 2.5 cm.
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| Malva neglecta leaf measured; leaf not divided. |
Bractlets
oblong-ovate; pet red-purple, 2-2.5 cm
Bractlets appear like sepals, to the sepals. My specimen
had 3 bractlets that were easy to identify. They were narrow and about 4-5 mm
long. 3 per flower even though the flowers had 5 petals and sepals.
-That
removes M. sylvestris. This looks similar to my specimen with leaves, but has a
showy flower and appears taller by internet pictures.
Bractlets linear or narrowly lanceolate; pet white or slightly tinged
with pink or purple, less than 2 cm.
Yes they are narrow. Yes the pet (petals) are less than 2
cm. Yes tinged with pink, yet mostly white.
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| Bractlets linear of Malva neglecta. See the little points on the back of the flower bud. |
Plants erect, to 2m;
fls subsessile in axillary fascicles
My
specimen is small. Ground to longest length, 8 inches on mine, but some in yard
may be slightly longer/taller; definitely nowhere close to 2 m. Looking at
pictures on the internet, this is a larger plant with larger leaves.
-That
removes M. verticillata.
Plants depressed, usually branched from the base; fls evidently
pedicellate
My plant is small. Instead of having branches or leaves
spreading from up the stem, they do appear split near the base; yet is not
rosette. The fls (flowers) do have a pedicellate (pedestal or stalk that holds
the flower away from the steam).
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| Disease on the leaf of Malva neglecta. |
Pet twice as long as the sep; mature carpels rounded and not rugose on
the back
I removed the pet and sepal to measure. Pet about 9 mm;
sepal about 10 mm. If you leave the parts attached, it appears the petal sticks
out of the flower, and it looks like it is longer, leading to confusion.
An
image on the internet gave a great comparison of the regose (wrinkled) look. (https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/flower/common-mallow
leading to https://www.minnesotawildflowers.info/udata/r9ndp23q/contrib/Malva-neglecta_Malva-rotundifolia_1-21-13_028-to-032_HF.jpg) [<--- Yes look at that link]
I will search for more mature pods later. The specimens I do have, has rounded
carpels that are not regose (wrinkled) they are just round.
-I
believe my specimen to be Malva neglecta.
Pet about equaling or
only slightly surpassing the sep; mature carpel flat and rugose-reticulate
The last lead….
Descriptions mention both the following are very similar to my specimen.
Cal only slightly accrescent, not reticulate-veiny;
fruiting pedicels mostly more than 10 mm.
The
reticulate-veiny means wrinkled or vein systems. What separates this one from
above includes mature carpels (the seed pod “cheese wheel”). This species has 8-11
mm size carpels at maturity. My specimen
is 8 mm, yet possibly not mature. I will have to look for mature carpels later
to confirm M. neglecta or M. rotundifolia of which I cite the web comparison
above. Then there should not be any question as none of the other species come
close. Also the “cheese wheel” center has a 1/3 diameter middle section in M.
neglecta; 1/5 in M. rotundifolia. My specimen has the 1/3 look.
-This
removes M. rotundifolia.
Cal strongly accrescent and reticulate-veiny in fr;
pedicels mostly less than 10 mm
My specimen has pedicels (flower
stalk holding stem structure) 2.5 cm long.
-This
removes M. parviflora
I conclude I have Malva neglecta growing in my yard.
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| Latin: Malva neglecta in situ in yardo finis |
Citations
Gleason, H. A. and A.
Cronquist (2014). Manual of vascular plants of Northeastern United States and
Adjacent Canada. Bronx, NY, The New York Botanical Garden Press.
Do look at the link to the picture within the text. Whoever did that did a great job showing the differences between the two species.
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| Malva neglecta |
