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Q. Who is Mr. Smarty Plants?

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Ask Mr. Smarty Plants is a free service provided by the staff and volunteers at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.

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Monday - August 22, 2005

From: Chihuahua, Mexico, Other
Region: Other
Topic: Seed and Plant Sources
Title: Smarty Plants on Yerba de la Negrita
Answered by: Nan Hampton

QUESTION:

I would like to know where I can get Yerba de la Negrita "Scarlet Globemallow". For what can I use it? What is it like? I have a rancho in Chihuahua Mexico and I wonder if it grows there.

ANSWER:

Scarlet globe-mallow (Sphaeralcea coccinea) grows in the southwestern U. S. and in northern Mexico. Some of its uses listed by the Native American Ethnobotany database from the University of Michigan-Dearborn are: a salve for sores and wounds, a tonic to improve diet, and to protect hands from fire and scalding water. Tucson Clinic of Botanical Medicine lists it for urinary tract irritation and bronchitis. Santa Fe Botanical Garden lists other uses.

You can visit the National Suppliers Directory on the Wildflower Center web page to find a list of nurseries that specialize in native plants in the Southwest.
 

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