Melhania ovata

(Cav.) Sprengel

Malvaceae Edible: Plant 10 iNaturalist observations

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Summary

Melhania ovata is a plant in the family Malvaceae.

Description

A shrub. It has many branches and is low growing. The leaves are broadly oval and 2-2.5 cm long by 1.5-1.8 cm wide. They are hairy on both surfaces. There are teeth along the edge. The flowers can occur singly or in groups or 2-4 in the axils of leaves. They are 1.5 cm across and yellow. The fruit is an oval capsule.

Edible Uses

The plant is edible.

Distribution

It is a tropical plant. It grows in dry or desert areas.

Where It Grows

Africa, Asia, Atlantic, Australia, Cape Verde, Chad, East Africa, Eritrea, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Mauritania, Niger, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Yemen,

Notes

There are about 60 Melhania species. Also put in the family Sterculiaceae and Pentapetaceae.

Synonyms

Brotera ovata Cay.Melhania abyssinica A. Rich.and others

Also Known As

Lolo-branco, Mato-branco

References (5)

Duarte, M. C., et al, 2022, Diversity of Useful Plants in Cabo Verde Islands: A Biogeographic and Conservation Perspective. Plants 2022, 11, 1313 p 6
East African Herbarium records, 1981,
Flora of Pakistan. www.eFloras.org
Mutie, F. M., et al, 2023, Important Medicinal and Food Taxa (Orders and Families) in Kenya, Based on Three Quantitative Approaches. Plants 2023, 12, 1145
Peters, C. R., O'Brien, E. M., and Drummond, R.B., 1992, Edible Wild plants of Sub-saharan Africa. Kew. p 188