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Gossypium herbaceum L.

Levant cotton (en), Cotonnier herbacé (fr)

Species

Angiosperms > Malvales > Malvaceae > Gossypium

Characteristics

Herbs or subshrubs, annual, to 1.5 m tall, pilose. Stipules filiform, 5-10 mm, caducous; petiole 2.5-8 cm, villous; leaf blade usually 5-lobed, 5-10 cm in diam., usually wider than long, lobes broadly ovate, less than 1/2 as long as leaf blade, abaxially minutely puberulent and villous on veins, adaxially stellate hirsute, base cordate, apex acute. Flowers solitary, axillary. Pedicel 1-2 cm, villous. Epicalyx lobes connate at base, broadly triangular, 2-3 cm, wider than long, sparsely villous on veins, 6-8-toothed. Calyx cup-shaped, 5-lobed. Corolla yellow, purple in center, 5-7 cm in diam.; petals 2.5-3 × 3-4 cm. Filaments uniform in length. Capsule usually 3-4-celled, ovoid, ca. 3 cm, apex beaked. Seeds free, obliquely cone-shaped, ca. 10 mm, with white wool and persistent short fuzz. Fl. Jul-Sep.
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A shrub. It grows 2 m high. The leaf stalk is 2.5-8 cm long. The leaf blade is divided into 5 lobes like the fingers on a hand. The leaves are 5-10 cm across. The lobes are broad and oval and half the length of the leaf. The flowers occur singly in the axils of the leaves. The flowers are yellow and red or purple at the centre. The fruit is a capsule with 3-4 valves. It is about 3 cm across. The seeds are about 1 cm across. They are white and woolly.
Foliis quiuquelobis, caule herbaceo.
Life form annual
Growth form
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention deciduous
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 1.5
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color -
Blooming months
JanFebMar
AprMayJun
JulAugSep
OctNovDec
Fruit color -
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway c3

Environment

A tropical plant. It is cultivated in China. It needs a temperature above 13-18°C. In Sichuan and Yunnan.
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Not known in the wild
Light 4-9
Soil humidity 4-6
Soil texture 3-6
Soil acidity -
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) 9-12

Usage

The seeds yield a cotton oil used for salads. It is also used in cooking. The seed is roasted and used as a coffee substitute. The leaves are eaten.
Uses animal food coffee substitute dye environmental use essential oil fiber fodder food gene source material medicinal oil poison
Edible leaves seeds
Therapeutic use Abortifacient agents (bark), Anti-bacterial agents (bark), Galactogogues (bark), Hemostasis (bark), Menstruation-inducing agents (bark), Amenorrhea (flower), Anti-bacterial agents (flower), Burns (flower), Diuretics (flower), Dysmenorrhea (flower), Galactogogues (flower), Hallucinations (flower), Hypochondriasis (flower), Jaundice (flower), Lactation disorders (flower), Liver diseases (flower), Menstruation-inducing agents (flower), Scabies (flower), Thirst (flower), Urination disorders (flower), Vaginal discharge (flower), Abscess (fruit), Ear diseases (fruit), Jaundice (fruit), Menstruation disturbances (fruit), Oral ulcer (fruit), Vaginal diseases (fruit), Abdominal pain (leaf), Anemia (leaf), Anti-bacterial agents (leaf), Antidotes (leaf), Antipyretics (leaf), Diarrhea (leaf), Diuretics (leaf), Dysentery (leaf), Earache (leaf), Headache (leaf), Hematinics (leaf), Intestinal diseases, parasitic (leaf), Laxatives (leaf), Malaria (leaf), Nervous system diseases (leaf), Pain (leaf), Scorpion stings (leaf), Snake bites (leaf), Urination disorders (leaf), Rheumatoid arthritis (leaf), Abortifacient agents (root), Abscess (root), Amenorrhea (root), Diarrhea (root), Diuretics (root), Dysentery (root), Dysmenorrhea (root), Dyspepsia (root), Ear diseases (root), Emollients (root), Fever (root), Flatulence (root), Galactogogues (root), Insecticides (root), Jaundice (root), Leprosy (root), Leukorrhea (root), Menstruation disturbances (root), Menstruation-inducing agents (root), Scabies (root), Skin diseases (root), Urination disorders (root), Uterine diseases (root), Abortifacient agents (seed), Abscess (seed), Analgesics (seed), Antifungal agents (seed), Antipyretics (seed), Antirheumatic agents (seed), Aphrodisiacs (seed), Asthenia (seed), Asthma (seed), Bronchitis (seed), Contraceptive agents (seed), Cough (seed), Dementia (seed), Demulcents (seed), Diabetes mellitus (seed), Diuretics (seed), Dizziness (seed), Dysentery (seed), Dyspepsia (seed), Earache (seed), Disorder of ejaculation (seed), Emollients (seed), Epilepsy (seed), Expectorants (seed), Fatigue (seed), Fever (seed), Galactogogues (seed), Gout (seed), Headache (seed), Hemorrhage (seed), Hypokalemia (seed), Inflammation (seed), Insecticides (seed), Lactation disorders (seed), Laxatives (seed), Menstruation disturbances (seed), Nervous system diseases (seed), Obesity (seed), Orchitis (seed), Pain (seed), Scabies (seed), Skin diseases (seed), Snake bites (seed), Syncope (seed), Tinnitus (seed), Toothache (seed), Tuberculosis, lymph node (seed), Tympanic membrane (seed), Ulcer (seed), Urination disorders (seed), Wound healing (seed), Wounds and injuries (seed), Delusions (seed), Sexual debility (seed), Abortifacient (unspecified), Absorbent (unspecified), Headache (unspecified), Bite(Snake) (unspecified), Brain (unspecified), Demulcent (unspecified), Dysentery (unspecified), Emmenagogue (unspecified), Expectorant (unspecified), Fever (unspecified), Fibroma(Uterus) (unspecified), Hemorrhage (unspecified), Hemostat (unspecified), Lactogogue (unspecified), Laxative (unspecified), Liniment (unspecified), Malaria (unspecified), Nervine (unspecified), Neuralgia (unspecified), Oxytoxic (unspecified), Parturition (unspecified), Pharyngitis (unspecified), Scabies (unspecified), Soap (unspecified), Sore (unspecified), Surgical-Dressing (unspecified), Tumor (unspecified), Vasoconstrictor (unspecified), Aphrodisiac (unspecified), Vulnerary (unspecified), Antiseptic (unspecified), Emollient (unspecified), Lactagogue (unspecified), Leprosy (unspecified), Skin (unspecified), Scorpion (unspecified), Contraceptive agents (unspecified), Diarrhea (unspecified), Diuretics (unspecified), Galactogogues (unspecified), Leukorrhea (unspecified), Menstruation disturbances (unspecified)
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Plants are grown from seed.
Mode seedlings
Germination duration (days) 7 - 14
Germination temperacture (C°) 21
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) 26 - 36
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Images

Habit

Gossypium herbaceum habit picture by Mel Mun (cc-by-sa)

Leaf

Gossypium herbaceum leaf picture by shubham shubham dhone (cc-by-sa)
Gossypium herbaceum leaf picture by Greco Andrea (cc-by-sa)
Gossypium herbaceum leaf picture by Meike Wolff (cc-by-sa)

Flower

Gossypium herbaceum flower picture by Massimiliano Spotti Massimiliano Spotti (cc-by-sa)
Gossypium herbaceum flower picture by jette witte (cc-by-sa)
Gossypium herbaceum flower picture by ilaria (cc-by-sa)

Fruit

Gossypium herbaceum fruit picture by M. Hedayat (cc-by-sa)
Gossypium herbaceum fruit picture by M. Hedayat (cc-by-sa)
Gossypium herbaceum fruit picture by thaysa passi (cc-by-sa)

Distribution

Gossypium herbaceum world distribution map, present in Brazil, China, Madagascar, Pakistan, Tajikistan, and South Africa

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:559730-1
WFO ID wfo-0000707926
COL ID 3H4C4
BDTFX ID 84194
INPN ID 611651
Wikipedia (EN) Link
Wikipedia (FR) Link

Synonyms

Xylon strictum Gossypium chinense Gossypium cinereum Gossypium convexum Gossypium croceum Gossypium decurrens Gossypium micranthum Gossypium molle Gossypium paniculatum Gossypium perrieri Gossypium tricuspidatum Gossypium zaitzevii Gossypium album Gossypium amblospermum Gossypium aureum Gossypium bicolor Gossypium eglandulosum Gossypium elatum Gossypium frutescens Gossypium fuscum Gossypium macrospermum Gossypium strictum Gossypium purpureum Gossypium siamense Gossypium simpsonii Gossypium vitifolium Gossypium siamense Gossypium latifolium f. paniculatum Gossypium latifolium f. tricuspidatum Gossypium leoninum Gossypium macedonicum Gossypium herbaceum var. frutescens Gossypium herbaceum var. perrieri Gossypium punctatum var. acerifolium Gossypium arboreum var. perrieri Gossypium herbaceum var. acerifolium Gossypium hirsutum subsp. paniculatum Gossypium hirsutum var. micranthum Gossypium hirsutum var. paniculatum Xylon leoninum Gossypium herbaceum var. herbaceum Gossypium albescens Gossypium herbaceum

Lower taxons

Gossypium herbaceum subsp. africanum
WorldFloraDB 2024