Rather than giving you gardening advice for March today I’m going to tell you about one plant, which turned out to be more interesting than expected.
Moving from one desert, the Mojave, to another, the Sonoran, has meant that I am learning to identify many new native plants, among them, the Common Mallow (Malva neglecta). The name “neglecta” is so apt because my neglect has resulted in massive growth of this plant in a narrow yard beside my house.
Surprise! Not a native
Yesterday afternoon, after I wrote the headline for this post and the paragraph above, I discovered that while this variety of Mallow is as common as dirt here in Southern Arizona it is not a native at all. Not even a native plant of the Western Hemisphere. It’s origins are in Egypt, probably in Nile marshes. That makes sense because the leaves are so large and dark green which is very untypical of desert plants, for example, the Desert Mallow (Sphaeralcea ambigua).
Since like most of you I am home all the time because of COVID-19, I tentatively planned to start removing at least some of this mallow mini-field.
But after learning more I’m not sure what to do about it. If anything.
How to eliminate weeds 3 ways–or not
Should I listen to the Round-up folks who claim to make it easy to exterminate with a quick spray? (We all know about Round-up so I won’t write more about this option.)
Or how about going extreme like some here in Arizona and blowtorch the weeds–uh…the mallow? You read that right: some gardeners here use flaming blowtorches on weeds because that will kill the seeds, too, even ones that are under a layer of gravel. No blowtorch among my garden tools, so that eliminates this one.
Then came the suggestion of a third way for weed elimination. A couple of gardeners recommended mixing 55% vinegar with water and a dash of liquid soap, then spraying it on the weeds. I am tempted to test this idea–someday when I feel I can risk using the vinegar in my emergency pantry for something other than salad dressing.
The next option is re-wilding
Inspired by a British gardening movement to let wild native plants thrive along roadsides and in city squares, should I simply let my Mallow continue to grow? In the U.K. a Back-to-Natives trend is growing (pun intended!) in an effort to support other native species, including bees, badgers and other wildlife. I wonder if here in Arizona, rattlesnakes and scorpions may find the mallow mini-field a friendly habitat.
Or should follow the advice of two forager friends who pick leaves of dandelions and mallows for their salads?
Behold the multi-use vegetable
They have assured me Mallow is edible, that its seeds tastes like its cousin, Okra (Abelmoschus esculentus).
“Use it in a salad or cook it to thicken soups like gumbo,” they tell me.
Then they go on to add: “It’s really high in Vitamins A, B, and C as well as calcium, magnesium and potassium. Like kale.”
Like kale?
No thanks. (And please don’t reply with a list of all the health benefits of kale. Broccoli, which I love, also is vitamin-packed.)
This morning I was informed by yet another Arizona gardener of one more use for Common Mallow’s big, soft leaves: as toilet paper! Eureka! That’s the solution to the hoarding problem. Plant Mallow now and have a lifetime supply of t.p.
And if the coronavirus situation and the hoarding get worse, maybe I’ll start picking the Mallow leaves and selling them on a street corner as a multi-purpose vegetable for kitchen and bathroom.
Respect the weeds. Stay safe. Happy Gardening.
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