42 PLANTS OF MASSACHUSETTS. 



Althaea. L. 15. 12. 



A. officinalis. L. Marsh Mallows. Found on the seacoast 

 in salt marshes, with a strong, erect stem, two feet high ; thick- 

 woolly, and leaves cordate and soft-downy on both sides ; entire, 

 or 3-lobed ; large purple flowers ; blossoms in August ; probably 

 introduced. 



A. rosea. L. Common Hollyhock. Well known in our gar- 

 dens ; flowers red, white, yellow, very dark-brown. Within a 

 few years the column of stamens has changed into small petals, 

 arranged into three or more stellate sets, and adding much to the 

 beauty of the flower. Leaves heart-form. 



A. ficifolia. L. Fig-leafed Hollyhock, has leaves some- 

 what palmate in 7 lobes. 



Hibiscus. L. 15. 12. 



H. palustris. L. Marsh Hibiscus. Grows about salt marsh- 

 es ; stem 3-5 feet high, erect, downy, with ovate and dentate 

 leaves, soft-downy beneath, and whitish ; flowers large, purple ; 

 outer calyx of numerous divisions ; inner calyx of 5 sections ; 

 blossoms in August ; on Charles River. Big. The fibres of 

 the bark are strong, and are wrought sometimes into cordage. 



Several exotic species are cultivated for ornamental plants, as H. 

 Moscheutos, W., H. Syriacus, L. ; H. Trionum, L., or Bladder 

 Ketmia, Flower of an Hour, is a common species in the gardens. 



Malva. L. 15. 12. 



M. rotund i folia. L. Low Mallows. Has a prostrate stem, 

 with roundish and cordate leaves ; flowers white and reddish-white, 

 pedicelled ; grows in fields, and especially about houses ; blossoms 

 from June to October, and is common everywhere, being like 

 catnep, motherwort, &c, one of the attendants of man in his 

 habitations in temperate climes. 



M. sylvestris. L. High Mallows. Somewhat naturalized, 

 growing for years without any cultivation ; stem 4-6 feet high, 



