Mallow, << MAL oh, >> is the popular name of a large family of plants. The mallow family includes about 1,000 kinds of herbs, shrubs, and trees that grow in tropical and temperate regions of the world. The plants of this family have fibrous stems and sticky sap. They bear flowers with many stamens (male reproductive parts) that are fused together into a tubelike structure. The hibiscus, hollyhock, and marsh mallow all belong to the mallow family. The cotton plant and okra also are members.
