Flower ID: IMG_5057.JPG-08-22-2020 Flower name (scientific): Abutilon theophrasti Medikus PY: 1787. Pronunciation guide: (phonetic spelling) ah-BEW-tih-lon theh-OH-frahs-tee Flower name (common): Velvet Leaf Other common names: Piemarker, Indian Mallow, Velvetleaf, Velvetweed, China Jute, Cotton-weed, Indian Hemp. Family name (common): Mallow Family name (scientific): Malvaceae Scientific name origin: Genus: Derived from the Arabic word for a plant of the mallow family. Specific epithet: For a species identified in the work of Theophrastus, or named for him. Common name origin: The leaves are covered in short hairs, which creates a velvety feel. Flower description: Size: 0.5 to 1.0 inches (1.3 to 2.5 cm) Petal count: 5 Color: orange or yellow Other: flower arrangement, Raceme Plant description: Erect Size: 12 to 84 inches (30 to 213 cm) Stem hairy: densely pubescent, with hairs stellate-tomentose. Other: Erect, branched. Leaf description: attachment is alternate, type is simple. Size: Typically about 8 to 15 cm (3 to 6 inches) long and approximately as wide as long. Color: Light green, with the upper leaf surface a dull green. Hairy: Leaves pubescent. Other: Shape: leaf, broadly ovate to suborbiculate (FNA), cordate or orbicular-cordate (IL). Origin (native, introduced, invasive): Introduced. The plant was introduced to the US sometime before 1700 for its potential as a fiber crop and its use to prepare rope and cordage (Spenser, 1984). The plant is native to China. It is now a major weed in parts of the US. Status (common, uncommon, threatened, rare): Common, treated as a problematic weed in agricultural regions. Bloom time (typical): July to October Cycle (annual, biennial, perennial): Annual Habitat: Disturbed sites, roadsides, waste areas, sun or part shade, dry. Fruit: Green, turning black with age. Schizocarp with 9 to 15 mericarps. Seed: Black, about 3 to 4 mm long, kidney, triangular, or heart shaped, minutely hairy. A single plant can produce as many as 17,000 seeds. Buried seeds have retained their viability for 20 to 50 years, and the plant has become a major weed in the US (Bello et al., 1995; Lueschen and Andersen, 1980; Warwick and Black, 1988). Importance to wildlife: A nectar source for various bees and other insects (Robertson, 1924). Bees in the genera Agapostemon, Apis, Bombus, Halictus, Lasioglossum, and Melissodes, butterflies Pholisora catullus (Common Sootywing) and Pieris rapae (Cabbage White), and flies in the genus Phorbia, have been recorded visiting this plant (Robertson, pp. 269-270, 1893). Click for further pollinator information on this flower. Similar species (if any): No close lookalikes. Ethnobotany: Moerman, in his monumental ethnobotanical works (Moerman, 1998; Moerman, 2009) provides no references to the use of this plant by Native Americans. This lack of utilization may reflect the relatively late introduction of the plant to the US, and the fact that Native Americans already had other plant resources to prepare cordage, e. g. Apocynum cannabinum. Latitude: 44.794488 Longitude: -91.495082 Altitude: 249 m Distribution: In Wisconsin: (Bayfield, Brown, Buffalo, Calumet, Chippewa, Clark, Columbia, Crawford, Dane, Dodge, Door, Dunn, Eau Claire, Fond du Lac, Grant, Green, Green Lake, Iowa, Jackson, Jefferson, Juneau, Kenosha, Kewaunee, La Crosse, Lafayette, Manitowoc, Marathon, Marquette, Milwaukee, Monroe, Oconto, Outagamie, Pepin, Pierce, Portage, Racine, Richland, Rock, Sauk, Sawyer, Sheboygan, Taylor, Trempealeau, Vernon, Walworth, Washington, Waukesha, Winnebago) Click here for distribution map In US: (AL, AR, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, UT, VA, VT, WA, WI, WV, WY) Click here for distribution map In Canada: (AB, BC, MB, NB, NS, ON, PE, QC, SK) Click here for distribution map References: Paul A. Fryxell and Steven R. Hill, In: Flora of North America Editorial Committee, eds. 1993+. Flora of North America North of Mexico [Online]. 22+ vols. New York and Oxford. Vol. 6. http://floranorthamerica.org/Abutilon_theophrasti. Accessed [09-30-2021]. Synonym(s): Abutilon abutilon (L.) Huth, Abutilon abutilon (L.) Rusby, Abutilon avicennae var. chinense Skvortsov, Abutilon avicennae f. nigrum Skvortsov, Abutilon behrianum F.Muell., Abutilon commune Oken, Abutilon pubescens Moench, Abutilon theophrasti var. chinense (Skvortsov) S.Y.Hu, Abutilon theophrasti var. nigrum (Skvortsov) S.Y.Hu, Abutilon tiliifolium (Willd.) Sweet, Malva abutilon (L.) E.H.L.Krause, Sida abutilifolia Moench ex Steud., Sida tenax Salisb., Side abutila St.-Lag. Basionym: Sida abutilon Linnaeus Sp. Pl. 2: 685. 1753. Homotypic Synonym(s): Abutilon avicennae Gaertn. Heterotypic Synonym(s): Sida abutilon L. Autonym: na Wetland Status (NC): FACU Wetland Status (MW): FACU