Common Mallow
Malva sylvestris
At a glance
Name
Scientific Name
AKA
Frequency
Habitat
Parts Used
Summary
Cicero, Pliny and Martial all wrote about Mallow – Martial using Mallow to “dispel his hangovers after orgies”. Whilst I can’t comment on the efficacy of this plant in orgy related hangovers, I can confirm just how useful this plant is, both as a food and a medicine.
Edibililty & Uses
Common Mallow is a good versitile wild edible used in cooking, medicinal applications and as a dye.
Parts Used
The young leaves make a good addition to salads.
The unfurling flowers have a sweetness and look beautiful in dishes, desserts and drinks. I’ve had good success drying these little pink flowers just as they open.
The flowers can also be used as a dye.
The older leaves are good in stews or deepfried, where they puff up like prawn crackers.
The cheeses (the round discs seen in the image) had a good mild nutty taste.
Mallow has many uses medicinally which extend well beyond Roman orgies.
When to forage?
March-May for the young leaves and shoots.
May to August/September for the flowers and ‘cheeses’.
Where to forage?
Very common throughout the British Isles, except Scotland and Wales where it becones a little scarcer.