STANDLEY — TREES AND SHRUBS OF MEXICO. 765 



pubescent beneath ; flowers long-pedicellate, borne chiefly in the upper axils ; 

 petals yellow, 12 to 14 mm. long. 



It is this species, probably, which has been reported from Mexico as S. 

 elUottii Torr. & Gray. 



16. Sida acuta Burm. Fl. Ind. 147. 1768. 

 Sida carpinifolia L. f. Suppl. PI. 307. 1781. 



Sonora to Tamaulipas, Yucatan, and Oaxaca. Widely distributed in tropical 

 and subtropical regions. 



Herb or shrub, sometimes 3 meters high, the stem minutely stellate-pubescent 

 or glabrate ; leeaves short-petiolate, lanceolate to elliptic, 2 to 10 cm. long, 

 acute, serrate, green and usually glabrate ; stipules linear, green, persistent ; 

 flowers axillary, short-pedicellate ; petals yellow or nearly white, 8 to 12 mm. 

 long; carpels short-awned or merely acute. " Malva colorada " (Sinaloa) ; 

 " malva del platanillo " (Veracruz); " chichib6 " (Yucatan, Maya); " escoba 

 blanca " (Porto Rico); "escoba," " escobo," "escoba babosa," " escobilla " 

 (Colombia) ; "malva de caballo " (Cuba) ; " escobita dulce " (Santa Domingo). 



The branches of this and other species of Sida are often used in Mexico for 

 making rough brooms. In Yucatan the bark fiber is used for the manufacture 

 of twine and hammocks. The plant is said to furnish good forage for horses and 

 sheep. The leaves and young shoots rubbed in water give a lather which may be 

 used for shaving, especially in the case of a tender and irritable skin. In India 

 the roots are esteemed for their stomachic properties, and they are employed as 

 a remedy for ague, dysentery, intermittent fevers, and snake bites. 



17. Sida xanti A. Gray, Proc. Amor. Acad. 22: 296. 1887. 



Baja California and Sinaloa ; type from Cape San Lucas, Baja California. 



Plants erect, herbaceous or suffrutescent, the branches stellate-pubescent and 

 viscid or glabrate ; leaves slender-petiolate, lanceolate or lance-ovate, 3 to 10 

 cm. long, obtuse to acuminate, dentate, green, sparsely stellate-pubescent be- 

 neath ; petals 1.5 to 2 cm. long. 



18. Sida potosina T. S. Brandeg. Univ. Calif. Publ. Bot. 4: 184. 1911. 



Known only from the type locality, Minas de San Rafael, San Luis Potosl. 



Stems suffrutescent, 30 to 40 cm. long, stellate-pubescent ; leaves short- 

 petiolate, ovate-elliptic, 2 to 3 cm. long, obtuse or rounded at apex, crenate- 

 dentate, stellate-pubescent ; pedicels 5 to 9 cm. long ; petals yellow, 7 mm. long ; 

 carpels not awned. 



19. Sida tragiaefolia A. Gray, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist. 6: 164. 1850. 

 Coahuila to Tamaulipas. Western Texas. 



Plants chiefly herbaceous ; leaves slender-petiolate, oblong or lance-oblong, 

 1.5 to 5 cm. long, obtuse, coarsely dentate, stellate-pilose beneath ; flowers long- 

 pedicellate ; petals orange-yellow, 10 to 12 mm. long ; carpels mucronate. 



20. Sida rhombifolia L. Sp. PI. 684. 1753. 



Nearly throughout Mexico, at least at low altitude. Widely distributed in 

 tropical or subtropical regions. 



Plants herbaceous or shrubby, often 2 meters high, the stems minutely stellate- 

 pubescent, leaves short-petiolate, oblong or lanceolate to rhombic-ovate or obo- 

 vate, 2 to 8 cm. long, obtuse or acute, serrate, usually minutely and densely 

 stellate-tomentulose beneath; petals pale yellow, about 6 mm. long; carpels 

 very shortly awned or merely acute. " Huinari," " huinar," " huinare " (Micho- 

 acSn, Jalisco); " axocatzin " (Ramirez); "escoba amarilla " (Nicaragua); 

 "escobilla" (Costa Rica) ; "malva de cochino " (Cuba) ; " tebincha " (Argen- 

 tina) ; " limpi6n " (Peru) ; "malva" (Santo Domingo). 



