Turk's-cap Mallow

Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii

Also listed as Malvaviscus drummondii

Found in open areas, streambanks, disturbed areas. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

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Not native

Not native to Florida. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 53%

Light: Partial shade, Full sun
Soil moisture: Dry to moist

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At a glance

Bloom: June to October

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Not yet recorded · Height · Spread · Life cycle · Leaves

This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.

Recorded in 13 Florida counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 2

Streams, rivers and their banks

Flowing water and its banks, bars and rocky shoals.

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

All habitats

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

9CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL

Genus host records with ranges including FL · Malvaviscus

Acharia stimuleaSaddleback Caterpillar Moth
Anomis erosaYellow Scallop Moth, Mallow Caterpillar
Anomis flavaTropical Anomis Moth
Anomis impastaGrey-Eyed Scalloped Moth
Automeris ioIo Moth
Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
Meskea dyspterariaWindow-Winged Moth
Platynota rostranaOmnivorous Platynota
Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformisEvergreen Bagworm Moth

Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)

—BeesSoutheastern regional records

—Specialist beesPollen specialists

1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Malvaviscus

Zenaida macrouraMourning Dove

Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family: Malvaceae

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope

Bloom · “June to October” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Light · “Partial shade; Full sun (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
Soil · “Dry; Moist (documented habitat)” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia

Also known as

Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii; Turk's cap Mallow

Conservation status

Florida rank	SNR
Global rank	GNR
FL status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

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