Herb: Abutilon


Latin name: Abutilon pictum


Synonyms: Abutilon striatum


Family: Malvaceae (Mallow Family)



Edible parts of Abutilon:

Flowers - raw or cooked. A delicious sweet flavour. The flowers produce nectar all the time they are open so, assuming the plant is grown indoors and is not visited by pollinating insects, the sweetness increases the longer the flower is open.

Description of the plant:



Plant:
Evergreen
Shrub

Height:
5 m
(16 feet)

Flowering:
April to
September

Habitat of the herb:

Cultivated as an ornamental plant, it is not known in a truly wild situation.

Propagation of Abutilon:

Seed - sow spring in a greenhouse. Germination should take place within a few weeks. Once the seedlings are large enough to handle, prick them out into individual pots. Grow them on for at least the first winter in a greenhouse and plant out in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of young shoots, June in a frame. Grow on in the greenhouse for their first winter and plant out in spring after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame. Grow on in the greenhouse for their first winter and plant out in spring after the last expected frosts.

Cultivation of the herb:

Cultivated as an ornamental plant, it is not known in a truly wild situation.

Medicinal use of Abutilon:

None known

Known hazards of Abutilon pictum:

None known

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future.