Sphaeralcea munroana
Sphaeralcea munroana
Safety & Hazards
The hairs on the leaves can cause irritation to some people[1].
Cultivation Details
Sphaeralcea munroana is often found in semi-arid environments, growing in areas where the mean annual rainfall can range from 150 - 380mm. It is very cold tolerant, succeeding in hardiness zone 4[2] but, like many species with downy leaves, it is not very tolerant of winter wet and will often fail to overwinter in mild but wet winter areas[3]. Requires a sunny position, succeeding in a range of well-drained soils from rocky and sandy to heavy clays[2]. When growing the plant as an ornamental, it is best to cut the stems back to ground level each winter[2].
Propagation
Seed - it has a hard seed coat and benefits from either autumn sowing or scarification of stored seed[2]. This can usually be done by pouring a small amount of nearly boiling water on the seeds (being careful not to cook them!) and then soaking them for 12 - 24 hours in warm water. By this time they should have imbibed moisture and swollen - if they have not, then carefully make a nick in the seedcoat (being careful not to damage the embryo) and soak for a further 12 hours before sowing. Softwood cuttings in a frame in early summer[3]. Division[3]. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Sphaeralcea+munroana>
Pollinators
Bees
References
- [1]Medicinal Plants of the Mountain West — Moore M. · Museum of New Mexico Press; Santa Fe · 2003 · ISBN 0-89013-454-5 ↩︎Detailed information on the medicinal uses of around 150 species of plants from the Rocky Mountains of N. America. An excellent, detailed publication, written in a style that connects the writer to his readers.
- [2]Plants Database — United States Department of Agriculture · http://plants.usda.gov/java/factSheet ↩︎An online database with an excellent collection of fact sheets about native N. American plants.
- [3]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
- [4]Native American Ethnobotany — Moerman. D. · Timber Press. Oregon. · 1998 · ISBN 0-88192-453-9 ↩︎Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.
- [5]Flora of N. America — http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/fna/ ↩︎An on-line version of the flora with an excellent description of the plant including a brief mention of plant uses.