Home | > | List of cultivated families | > | Malvaceae subfamily Malvoideae | > | Gossypium | > | hirsutum |
Synonyms: | |
Common names: | Cotton (English) Mudonje (Shona) Mushinda (Shona) Utshinda (Ndebele) |
Description: | Annual or short-lived perennial shrublet up to 1.5m tall. Leaves almost round in outline, 3-5-lobed to about halfway. Flowers in 1-several flowered clusters, cream to pale yellow, fading pink, with or without dark centre. Epicalyx of 3 large leaf-like bracts. Fruit a round capsule 2-4 cm in diameter, splitting to release the seeds covered in dense white cotton wool. |
Notes: | Note: commonly cultivated in Zimbabwe and occasionally escaping. |
Derivation of specific name: | hirsutum: covered with long, moderately stiff and not interwoven hairs; hirsute |
Flowering time: | Feb - May |
Worldwide distribution: | Native to Central America |
Growth form(s): | |
Insects associated with this species: | Utetheisa pulchella (Food plant) Egybolis vaillantina (Food plant) |
Spot characters: | Display spot characters for this species |
Image last updated: | Sunday 31 January 2010 |
Literature: |
Mapaura, A. & Timberlake, J. (eds) (2004). A checklist of Zimbabwean vascular plants Southern African Botanical Diversity Network Report No. 33 Sabonet, Pretoria and Harare Page 60. |
Home | > | List of cultivated families | > | Malvaceae subfamily Malvoideae | > | Gossypium | > | hirsutum |