The Jepson Herbarium
		University of California, Berkeley

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Annual to tree; generally with stellate hairs, often with bristles or peltate scales; juice generally mucilage-like; bark fibrous.
Leaf: generally cauline, alternate, petioled, simple [palmate- compound], generally palmate-lobed and/or veined, generally toothed, evergreen or not; stipules persistent or not.
Inflorescence: head, spike, raceme, or panicle, in panicle or not (a compound panicle), or flowers >= 1 in leaf axils, or flowers generally 1 opposite a leaf or on a spur; bracts leaf-like or not; bractlets 0 or on flowering stalks, often closely subtending calyx, generally in involucel.
Flower: generally bisexual, radial; sepals 5, generally fused at base, abutting in bud, larger in fruit or not, nectaries as tufts of glandular hairs at base; petals (0)5, free from each other but generally fused at base to, falling with filament tube, clawed or not; stamens 5–many, filaments fused for most of length into tube around style, staminodes 5, alternate stamens, or generally 0; pistil 1, ovary superior, stalked or generally not, chambers generally >= 5, styles or style branches, stigmas generally 1 or 1–2 × chamber number.
Fruit: loculicidal capsule, [ berry], or 5–many, disk- or wedge-shaped segments (= mericarps).
266 genera, 4025 species: worldwide, especially warm regions; some cultivated (e.g., Abelmoschus okra; Alcea hollyhock; Gossypium cotton; Hibiscus hibiscus). [Angiosperm Phylogeny Group 1998 Ann Missouri Bot Gard 85:531–553] Recently treated to include Bombacaceae, Sterculiaceae, Tiliaceae. Mature fruit needed for identification; "outer edges" are surfaces between sides and back (abaxial surface) of segment. "Fl stalk" used instead of "pedicel", "peduncle", especially where both needed (i.e., when flowers both 1 in leaf axils and otherwise). —Scientific Editors: Steven R. Hill, Thomas J. Rosatti.
Unabridged references: [Alverson et al. 1999 Amer J Bot 86:1474–1486; Bayer et al. 1999 Bot J Linn Soc 129:267–303; Hill 2009 Madroño 56:104–111]

Key to Malvaceae

1. Fl generally < 3 mm wide; petals with thread-like claws; ovary, fruit stalked ..... AYENIA

1' Fl generally > 3 mm wide; petals 0 or without thread-like claws; ovary, fruit not stalked

2. Petals 0; calyx showy, generally > 25 mm wide; flowers 1 in leaf axils; shrub, small tree ..... FREMONTODENDRON

2' Petals 5, often showy; calyx not showy, generally < 25 mm wide; flowers 1 in leaf axils or not; annual, perennial herb, to small tree

3. Fr a capsule; seeds 2–many per chamber; flowers showy, generally 1 in leaf axils or on axillary short-shoots

4. Fr chambers 3–5; style not branched, generally shallowly lobed at tip; involucel 3(5)-lobed, leaf-like, generally persistent; seeds obovoid or angular, generally long-white-hairy; fruit generally gland-dotted ..... [Gossypium hirsutum]

4' Fr chambers 5; style branched or deeply lobed at tip; involucel 3–12-lobed, not leaf-like, shed in age or not; seeds reniform, short-hairy or glabrous; fruit not gland-dotted

5. Style 5-branched at tip; petals generally white, yellow, lavender, or red; involucel 5–12(20)-lobed, persistent ..... HIBISCUS

5' Style 5-lobed at tip; petals white, pink, blue, or purple; involucel 3–6-lobed, persistent or not

6. Perennial to shrub; petals generally white, yellow, blue, or lilac-blue to purple, membranous; involucel lobes 6, linear, persistent ..... [Alyogyne huegelii]

6' Small tree; petals white to rose-pink, fleshy; involucel lobes 3–5, generally ovate, generally deciduous ..... LAGUNARIA

3' Fr of 5–40 segments that generally separate from axis and each other when mature; seeds generally 1–4(15) per chamber; flowers showy or not, 1–10 in leaf axils or > 1 in spike, raceme, or panicle

7. Stigmas linear, on inner side of style branches; fruit segments indehiscent

8. Anthers near top of filament tube, in 2 concentric series; bractlets subtending calyx 0(1–3), generally not forming involucel; fruit segments 5–10, beak short or 0 ..... SIDALCEA

8' Anthers near top of filament tube, below, not in 2 series; bractlets subtending calyx 3–11, generally forming involucel; fruit segments 5–40, beak 0

9. Bractlets 5–11, fused; flowers generally > 6 cm wide, in (spike-) or raceme-like cymes; petal veins generally indistinct; stem erect ..... ALCEA

9' Bractlets 3, free or ± fused; flowers generally < 6 cm wide, 1–10 in leaf axils, generally not in spike- or raceme-like cymes (occasionally in raceme-like cymes in Malva); petal veins often distinct; stem prostrate to erect

10. Fr segments generally lacking edges, seed generally not firmly enclosed by, readily separating from fruit wall; bractlets fused ± 1/2 ..... LAVATERA

10' Fr segments generally with edges, seed firmly enclosed by, not readily separating from fruit wall; bractlets free or fused ± 1/2 ..... MALVA

7' Stigmas head-like or obliquely squared, at tip of style branches; fruit segments indehiscent or ± dehiscent

11. Fr segment below indehiscent, firm, net-veined, above dehiscent, with 2 spreading, scarious wings; bractlets 0; shrub; PR, DSon ..... HORSFORDIA

11' Fr segment indehiscent or not, net-veined or not, wings 0; bractlets 0–3; annual to shrub; widespread including e PR, DSon

12. Fr segment generally 1–6(15)-seeded

13. Petals salmon-orange; fruit segment 2-chambered, 2-seeded; flowers 1 in leaf axils; bractlets 3, ± persistent; stem decumbent to prostrate, rooting ..... MODIOLA

13' Petals occasionally salmon-orange; fruit segment 1–±2-chambered, 1–6(15)-seeded; flowers 1 in leaf axils, or in cyme, raceme, or panicle; bractlets 0–3, persistent or not; stem erect or prostrate, generally not rooting

14. Petals generally pale yellow, orange, white, pink, or ± red; bractlets 0; seeds 3–9(15) per fruit segment

15. St generally erect (decumbent); petals yellow, yellow-orange, orange-pink, or ± red; fruit segment not inflated, 3–6(15)-seeded, walls firm to woody ..... ABUTILON

15' St generally decumbent or trailing; petals white to pale yellow; fruit segment inflated, 3-seeded, walls flexible, papery ..... HERISSANTIA

14' Petals white, ± rose, pink, ± lavender, or red-orange; bractlets generally 1–3; seeds 1–3(4) per fruit segment

16. Fr segment bristly, ± dehiscent to base, generally not net-veined; bractlets 3, ± persistent; stigmas generally oblique-squared, often ± elongate; NCo, NCoRH, CaR, MP (Shasta Co.), KR ..... ILIAMNA

16' Fr segment generally not bristly, below indehiscent, strongly net-veined, above dehiscent, smooth; bractlets (0)1–3, generally deciduous; stigmas generally symmetric, head-like; especially D or disturbed areas ..... SPHAERALCEA (3)

16'a. Bractlets 3, conspicuous, persistent; petals dark-veined at base; generally disturbed urban sites ..... [Anisodontea capensis] (2)

16'a' Bractlets (0)1–3, inconspicuous, generally deciduous; petals not dark-veined; generally D ..... SPHAERALCEA (3)

12' Fr segment generally 1-seeded

17. Bractlets 0

18. Generally subshrub (annual); fruit segment below indehiscent, strongly net-veined, above dehiscent, smooth; native, especially D ..... SPHAERALCEA (3)

18' Generally annual (perennial herb); fruit segment ± uniform; naturalized, widespread, incl D

19. Petals ± purple, white, or yellow; leaves generally ± lobed to hastate; fruit segment side walls disintegrating ..... ANODA

19' Petals pale- to orange-yellow; leaves unlobed; fruit segment side walls not disintegrating ..... [Sida rhombifolia]

17' Bractlets generally 1–3, occasionally deciduous in flower or fruit

20. Fr segment dehiscent; flowers generally > 1 in leaf axils; widespread, generally chaparral ..... MALACOTHAMNUS

20' Fr segment partly or fully indehiscent; flowers 1 in leaf axils or in generally raceme-like cymes; generally D or disturbed sites

21. Fr segment below indehiscent, sides strongly net-veined, above dehiscent, sides smooth; petals generally rose-pink to salmon-orange; inflorescence raceme-like, generally in panicle, flowers facing out ..... SPHAERALCEA (3)

21a. Bractlets 3, conspicuous, persistent; petals dark-veined at base; generally disturbed urban sites ..... [Anisodontea capensis] (2)

21a' Bractlets (0)3, inconspicuous, generally deciduous; petals not dark-veined; generally D ..... SPHAERALCEA (3)

21' Fr segment generally indehiscent, sides generally ± weakly net-veined; petals generally white, pale ± yellow, or ± purple; inflorescence raceme or flowers generally 1 in leaf axils, facing up

22. Annual, prostrate to erect, not weedy, green, glabrous or generally sparsely stellate-hairy; leaf base symmetric; petals white to ± purple ..... EREMALCHE

22' Perennial, generally prostrate, generally weedy, ± gray, densely stellate-canescent or hairs scaly; leaf base asymmetric; petals generally pale ± yellow ..... MALVELLA

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Citation for the whole project: Jepson Flora Project (eds.) [year] Jepson eFlora, http://ucjeps.berkeley.edu/IJM.html [accessed on month, day, year]
Citation for an individual treatment: [Author of taxon treatment] [year]. [Taxon name] in Jepson Flora Project (eds.) Jepson eFlora, [URL for treatment]. Accessed on [month, day, year].
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