Abutilon ramosum (Cav.) Guill.

Perennial, 1-2 m tall herb or shrubby. Branches stellulate tomentose mixed with simple, spreading weak hairs. Leaves with 3-10 cm long, pubescent petiole; stipules 6-10 mm long, filiform-linear, hairy; blade 3-13 cm long, 2-11 cm broad, chartaceous, broadly ovate, acuminate, cordate at base, coarsely crenate or serrate up to the base, stellulate pubescent to glabrescent on both sides, sometimes 3-angular. Flowers axillary or terminal, solitary or paired or divided above dichotomously (once or twice, each into two) as in cyme; peduncle 1.5-4.5 cm long, tomentose and mixed with a few simple, weak, spreading hairs; pedicel in solitary 3-4 cm long, articulate above the middle, in cyme 3-6 mm long, articulate in the middle or above or without articulation. Calyx 5-7 mm long, fused up to the middle; lobes detoid-ovate, acuminate-cuspidate, 3-5. mm broad, pubescent, viscid. Corolla yellow, ± 1.5 cm across; petals 10-12 mm long. Staminal column very short, puberulous. Fruit cylindric, ± 8 mm long (excluding awns), 5-6 mm broad, stellate pubescent, slightly viscid; mericarps c. 10, each with c. 2 mm long, somewhat spreading awns, 3-4 mm broad. Seeds 24 per mericarp, brown-black, 1.5-2 mm across.

Distribution: Tropical Africa, India and Pakistan.

ramosum: branched

Suffrutex up to c. 1.25 m tall. Stems branching near the base, erect or sometimes spreading, becoming woody near the base. most parts densely covered with short stellate hairs, often somewhat rough, usually with additional longer hairs and sticky glands, particularly when young. Leaves broadly ovate-cordate, sometimes shallowly 3-lobed, 4-10(15) cm long, dark green above, paler below, both surfaces finely and slightly roughly stellate-velvety; margin shallowly but distinctly and regularly toothed. Flowers yellow to orange, c. 1.5-2 cm in diameter, 3-4 together in the upper leaf axils; peduncle c. 4 cm long. Fruit with about 8 mericarps, each 9 × 3 × 2-2.5 mm, 2-3-seeded, light brown when dry, radiately spreading with long, curved, spine-like awns.

Widespread in Tropical, Africa (see Mozambique), Namibia and Mpumalanga, South Africa. Also in Northwest India.