About Herissantia crispa (L.) Brizicky
Herissantia crispa (L.) Brizicky is a species of flowering plant in the mallow family, with the common names bladdermallow and curly abutilon. It is native to the tropical Americas, but now occurs throughout tropical and warmer temperate regions of the world as an introduced species, and sometimes grows as a weed. This plant is most often a perennial herb, but may sometimes grow as an annual. Its maximum stem length reaches around 1.5 meters, and it typically takes a trailing or creeping growth form. The entire plant is covered in whitish hairs. Its leaves are oval or heart-shaped, reaching up to 7 centimeters in length, and have rippled edges. The inflorescence consists of a single flower that grows from a leaf axil. The flower is carried on a long-haired pedicel that is half-erect before bending downward at a joint. The flower has five pale yellow oval petals, each up to one centimeter long. Its fruit is a lantern-like inflated sphere divided into ribbed segments. The fruit is up to 2 centimeters wide, covered in long hairs, and splits open when mature. Each segment of the fruit holds 2 or 3 black, kidney-shaped seeds.
