Malvaceae, or the mallow family, is a family of
flowering plants containing a number of genera, generally with five showy
petals and five green
sepals and numerous stamens that are fused at the base and form a tube around the pistil. Most species are
herbs or
shrubs but some species are trees. There are over 100 genera with close to 1,500 species in the family depending on the classification of some of the genera. Most species have stellate hairs and mucus like sap. The best recognized genera include
Malva,
Abutilon,
Althaea,
Lavatera,
Abelmoschus,
Malope,
Hibiscus plus others that are grown as garden plants over many regions of the world. A number are pest species in
agriculture, including
Abutilon theophrasti and Modiola caroliniana plus others that are garden escapes.
Cotton (4 species of
Gossypium),
kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus) and
okra (Abelmoschus esculentus) are important agricultural crops.
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