Copper globe-mallow
StarSphaeralcea angustifolia
Synonyms: Malvastrum angustifolium, Malveopsis angustifolia, Sphaeroma angustifolium, Malva angustifolia
Western Herbalism Properties
Traditional Uses
Indigenous peoples of the south-western United States made extensive medicinal use of copper globe-mallow. Navajo, Tewa, Keres, Kiowa, and Pima groups recorded ten distinct drug applications, including use as a cold remedy, cough medicine, gastrointestinal aid, antidiarrheal, dermatological aid, disinfectant, snake-bite remedy, ceremonial medicine, gynecological aid, and miscellaneous disease remedy (Native American Ethnobotany Database). Additional non-medicinal uses included decoration, paint, fasteners, preservative, and as an unspecified food.
Gallery
Botanical Description
Sphaeralcea angustifolia, the copper or narrow-leaf globe-mallow, is a shrubby perennial of the mallow family (Malvaceae) producing many erect stems reaching up to about three metres in maximum height, the whole plant clothed in a woolly or felt-like indumentum of stellate hairs. The grey-green leaves are lance-shaped, up to 5 cm long, with wavy or shallowly lobed margins. Flowers are borne in elongate, leafy panicles along the upper stems; each bloom has five wedge-shaped petals just under 1 cm long, ranging from coppery orange to pinkish-red, surrounding a column of yellow anthers typical of the family. The fruit is a flattened schizocarp of several one-seeded mericarps. The species inhabits desert and plateau habitats across the south-western United States and northern and central Mexico, occurring on dry roadsides, washes, and open slopes from low to mid elevations.
This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before using any herbal remedy, especially if you are pregnant, nursing, or taking medications.
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