Gossypium tomentosum
COMMON NAME | Maʻo or Hawaiian
cotton |
TYPE | Shrub |
FAMILY | Malvaceae |
NOTES | Typically growing in
the wild to 3-6' tall spreading to as much as 7-10' wide. Plants feature 3- to 5-lobed, maple-like,
silver green to gray-green leaves. Bright yellow hibiscus-like flowers (to
2-3" wide) bloom singly or in clusters of 2 or 3 from the leaf axis. In
Hawaii, flowers bloom from summer through winter. Flowers are followed by
ovoid podswhich split open when ripe to release the seeds which are embedded
in brown fibers. The native Hawaiian
cotton, or maʻo, helped to save the cotton industry in modern times. When
maʻo is crossed with other cotton strains, the resulting commercial hybrids
are less attractive to insect pests that destroy cotton crops. |
GEOGRAPHIC REGION | Endemic to the Hawaiian Islands |
NATIVE HABITAT | Low, hot, dry coastal
areas at elevations from sea level to 120 m (390 ft) |
WEB SOURCES |
