Malva nicaeensis
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Malvales
Family: Malvaceae
Genus: Malva
Species:
M. nicaeensis
Binomial name
Malva nicaeensis
Synonyms

Malva arvensis

Malva nicaeensis is a species of flowering plant in the mallow family known by the common names bull mallow[1] and French mallow.[2]

Description

Malva nicaeensis is an annual or biennial herb producing a hairy, upright stem up to 60 centimeters long.[3] The leaves are up to 12 centimeters wide and have several slight lobes along the edges.

Flowers appear in the leaf axils, each with pinkish to light purple petals around a centimeter long. The disc-shaped fruit has several segments.

Plant uses and properties

In the Levant, mallows grow profusely after the first winter rains. The leaves and stems are edible, and are widely collected by indigenous peoples for food, as they make an excellent garnish when chopped and fried in olive-oil with onions and spices. In Israel, the plant is renowned for having fed the besieged Jewish population in the 1948 Battle for Jerusalem, its use similar to spinach. A particularly famous preparation are the Khubeza patties. Apicius, a collection of Roman cookery recipes, mentions garum being used as a fish stock to flavor cooked mallows.[4]

References

  1. ↑ USDA, NRCS (n.d.). "Malva nicaeensis". The PLANTS Database (plants.usda.gov). Greensboro, North Carolina: National Plant Data Team. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
  2. ↑ BSBI List 2007 (xls). Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland. Archived from the original (xls) on 2015-06-26. Retrieved 2014-10-17.
  3. ↑ "Malva nicaeensis in Flora of North America @ efloras.org". www.efloras.org. Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  4. ↑ Apicius, De Re Coquinaria (Book III, section VIII)
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.