Seashore mallow is a native short-lived subshrub in the Mallow (Malvaceae) family and is found in marshes and brackish water along the eastern seashore of the United States. Seashore mallow is moderately salt tolerant growing in sunny wet to well-drained but moisture-retentive sites. It grows 3 to 6 feet tall and 2 to 4 feet wide with soft gray green angular leaves. The beautiful hibiscus-like pink flowers appear from July to October with their nectar attracting pollinators like hummingbirds and butterflies. Use this plant along ditches, ponds and streams, in rain gardens and for native/pollinator gardens in moist soil. This plant was selected as the 1990 NC Wildflower of the Year , a program managed by the North Carolina Botanical Garden with some financial support from the Garden Club of North Carolina. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: No significant problems.
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Soil texture
High Organic Matter; Sand
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist | Occasional Flooding | Occasionally Wet
Available space
3 feet-6 feet
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 3 ft. 0 in. - 6 ft. 0 in. | Width: 2 ft. 0 in. - 4 ft. 0 in.
Growth rate
Medium
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous (3-15 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Erect
Texture
Medium
Leaf color
Gray/Silver; Green
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf shape
Deltoid; Ovate; Rhomboidal
Leaf margin
Dentate; Entire
Leaf value
Edible
Leaf size
3-6 inches long
Hairs present
Yes
Leaf detail
Gray-green ovate to deltoid or rhomboid, entire to irrgular tooths on the margins. Leaves are 2-5 inches with slightly hairy or rough, divergent basal leaves.
Flower color
Pink
Flower value
Edible; Showy
Flower form
Solitary
Flower shape
Cup
Flower size
1-3 inches
Flower detail
Solitary flowers range from 1.5-3 inches in width and may be axillary or terminal. They have five petals and yellow stamens along a tubular column. They bloom from July to October.
Bloom time
Fall; Summer
Fruit color
Brown/Copper
Fruit type
Capsule
Fruit detail
Brown ,flat 5 chambered capsules with a single seed inside each chamber display from October to November
Stem color
Gray/Silver; Green
Stem detail
Pubecent gray green stems
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Native
Origin
E. U.S.A. to Texas, Bermuda, Cuba, S. Europe to N. Iran
Distribution
AL , DE , FL , GA , LA , MD , MS , NC , NJ , NY , PA , SC , TX , VA
Wildlife value
This plant attracts hummingbirds, butterflies, and other pollinators.
Attracts
Butterflies; Hummingbirds; Pollinators
Food & Medicine
Edible parts
Leaves; Flowers; Roots
Harvest time
Fall
Fruit type
Capsule
Edibility
Flowers can be eaten fresh on salads or used to make tea. Leaves are edible cooked or raw but best if cooked. Roots can also be eaten raw or cooked.
Uses (ethnobotany)
Oil from the seeds have used as a biofuel and in paints and varnishes. Fibers from the stem have been used to make string.