Sida Cordifolia - 0.5 kg Seeds

Sida cordifolia, known as Bala or country mallow (Sida cordifolia), is a small woody perennial herb or subshrub rather than a true tree, prized chiefly as a medicinal plant in Ayurveda. The whole plant, and especially the seeds and roots, are used as a rejuvenating tonic (rasayana) and for nervous and rheumatic complaints.

It grows as a common roadside and wasteland weed throughout India, from the dry plains to scrub forest margins, and is cultivated for the herbal trade. The plant is drought tolerant and thrives in poor, gravelly soils under full sun, producing small yellow mallow flowers followed by seed capsules.

• Family: Malvaceae
• Native region: pantropical, native and widespread in India
• Mature height: 0.5–1.5 m
• Growth rate: moderate

Sowing the seed: soak the small hard seeds in water overnight to aid imbibition, then sow about 1 cm deep directly in beds or pots at the start of the rains. Germination usually takes 14–21 days. Thin the seedlings to give each plant room; the crop is hardy once established and needs little irrigation.