in botany, a genus of the monadelphia polyandria clas. The calyx is double, the exterior one consisting of three leaves; and there are many capsules, containing each one seed. There are 22 species, five of them natives of Britain, viz. the sylvestris, or common mallow; the rotundifolia, or dwarf mallow; the parvisutura, or small flowered mallow; the alcea, or vervain mallow; and the molchata, or jagged-leaved vervain mallow. The leaves of the mallow are emollient.