Gossypium tomentosum

Maʻo is a shrub that reaches a height of 1.5–5 ft (0.46–1.52 m) and a diameter of 5–10 ft (1.5–3.0 m).{{Cite journal |last1=Kealoha |first1=May K. |last2=Sinclair |first2=Sandra L. |last3=Richardson |first3=Karol K. |date=2019-09-16 |title=Mālama nā makua i nā keiki me ka hānō: Native Hawaiian Parents Caring for Their Children with Asthma, (Part 2) |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.31372/20190403.1020 |journal=Asian/Pacific Island Nursing Journal |volume=4 |issue=3 |pages=97–107 |doi=10.31372/20190403.1020 |pmid=31583264 |issn=2373-6658|pmc=6753847 }} The seed hairs (lint) are short and reddish brown, unsuitable for spinning or twisting into thread. Its flowers are bright yellow and have from 3-5 lobes that bloom in late summer to winter.{{Cite web |title=Native Plants Hawaii - Viewing Plant : Gossypium tomentosum |url=http://nativeplants.hawaii.edu/plant/view/Gossypium_tomentosum/#:~:text=Flowers%20are%20bright%20lemon%20yellow.&text=Ma%CA%BBo%20blooms%20from%20late%20summer,seeds%20follow%20the%20blooming%20period.&text=The%20leaves%20are%203-%20to%205-lobed. |access-date=2024-12-02 |website=nativeplants.hawaii.edu}}

Its ancestor may have come to the islands from the Americas as a seed on the wind or in the droppings of a bird, or as part of floating debris.{{Cite journal |last1=DeJoode |first1=Daniel R. |last2=Wendel |first2=Jonathan F. |date=November 1992 |title=Genetic Diversity and Origin of the Hawaiian Islands Cotton, Gossypium tomentosum |url=http://doi.wiley.com/10.1002/j.1537-2197.1992.tb13735.x |journal=American Journal of Botany |volume=79 |issue=11 |pages=1311 |doi=10.2307/2445059|jstor=2445059 |url-access=subscription }}

It inhabits low shrublands at elevations from sea level to 120 m (390 ft).{{Cite journal |date=January 1961 |title=Bernice P. Bishop Museum, Hawaii |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/189020e0 |journal=Nature |volume=189 |issue=4758 |pages=20–21 |doi=10.1038/189020e0 |issn=0028-0836|url-access=subscription }} They can be found on all main Hawaiian islands besides Hawai'i, otherwise known as the Big Island.{{Cite web |title=Maʻo (Gossypium tomentosum) – Maui Nui Botanical Gardens |url=https://mnbg.org/hawaiian-native-plant-collection/ma%CA%BBo-gossypium-tomentosum/ |access-date=2024-12-02 |language=en-US}}

Gossypium tomentosum has been bred with other cotton plants to try and get a more persistent cotton plant for.{{Cite journal |last1=Lehman |first1=Alex |last2=Pender |first2=Richard |last3=Morden |first3=Clifford |last4=Wieczorek |first4=Ania M. |date=January 2014 |title=Assessment of Persistence of Hybrids between Alien Pima Cotton, Gossypium barbadense (Malvaceae), and Endemic Hawaiian Cotton, G. tomentosum , in Hawai'i 1 |url=http://www.bioone.org/doi/10.2984/68.1.8 |journal=Pacific Science |language=en |volume=68 |issue=1 |pages=85–96 |doi=10.2984/68.1.8 |issn=0030-8870|url-access=subscription }} Ma’o has also been studied with the interest in greater pollination consistency.{{Cite journal |last1=Pleasants |first1=John M. |last2=Wendel |first2=Jonathan F. |date=January 2010 |title=Reproductive and Pollination Biology of the Endemic Hawaiian Cotton, Gossypium tomentosum (Malvaceae) |url=http://www.bioone.org/doi/10.2984/64.1.045 |journal=Pacific Science |language=en |volume=64 |issue=1 |pages=45–55 |doi=10.2984/64.1.045 |issn=0030-8870|url-access=subscription }}{{Cite journal |last1=Krakos |first1=Kyra N. |last2=Booth |first2=Gary M. |last3=Bernhardt |first3=Peter |date=January 2010 |title=Mechanical vs. Beetle-mediated Self-pollination in Gossypium Tomentosum (Malvaceae), an Endangered Shrub |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.4137/IJIS.S4801 |journal=International Journal of Insect Science |language=en |volume=2 |doi=10.4137/IJIS.S4801 |issn=1179-5433|doi-access=free }} Additionally, Ma’o has been used to breed with other cotton plants to try and build up more resilience to salt.{{Cite journal |last1=Oluoch |first1=George |last2=Zheng |first2=Juyun |last3=Wang |first3=Xingxing |last4=Khan |first4=Muhammad Kashif Riaz |last5=Zhou |first5=Zhongli |last6=Cai |first6=Xiaoyan |last7=Wang |first7=Chunying |last8=Wang |first8=Yuhong |last9=Li |first9=Xueyuan |last10=Wang |first10=Heng |last11=Liu |first11=Fang |last12=Wang |first12=Kunbo |date=May 2016 |title=QTL mapping for salt tolerance at seedling stage in the interspecific cross of Gossypium tomentosum with Gossypium hirsutum |url=https://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10681-016-1674-6 |journal=Euphytica |language=en |volume=209 |issue=1 |pages=223–235 |doi=10.1007/s10681-016-1674-6 |issn=0014-2336|url-access=subscription }} The salinity of its habitat is high due to its close proximity to the ocean and thus has a resistance to salt more than other species.

Native Hawaiians use maʻo flowers to make a yellow dye.{{Cite journal |last1=Roeder |first1=K. |last2=West |first2=J. |last3=Smith |first3=B. |date=2011-03-01 |title=Making a smoker to produce cellulose-based smoke for treating forest tree seeds |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.3368/npj.12.1.27 |journal=Native Plants Journal |volume=12 |issue=1 |pages=27–30 |doi=10.3368/npj.12.1.27 |issn=1522-8339|url-access=subscription }} They were also used to aid childbirth and mitigate stomach aches.{{Cite web |title=Gossypium tomentosum |url=https://plantpono.org/pono-plants/gossypium-tomentosum-mao/#:~:text=An |access-date=2024-11-05 |website=Plant Pono |language=en-US}}

Gossypium tomentosum is under the G2 status and is considered at risk of extinction due to its lack of reach around the world.{{Cite web |title=Hawai'i Cotton / Center For Plant Conservation |url=https://saveplants.org/plant-profile/2044/Gossypium-tomentosum/Hawai/ |access-date=2024-11-05 |language=en-US}} This conservation status comes from the NatureServe definitions on different elements that affect species diversity.{{Cite web |title=Definitions of NatureServe Conservation Status Ranks |url=https://help.natureserve.org/biotics/content/record_management/Element_Files/Element_Tracking/ETRACK_Definitions_of_Heritage_Conservation_Status_Ranks.htm |access-date=2024-12-02 |website=help.natureserve.org}}

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• [http://www.hear.org/species/gossypium_tomentosum/ Gossypium tomentosum (ma'o) information] from the Hawaiian Ecosystems at Risk project (HEAR)
• [http://www.hear.org/starr/plants/images/species/?q=gossypium+tomentosum Gossypium tomentosum (ma'o) images] from Forest & Kim Starr

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tomentosum

Category:Plants described in 1865

Category:Endemic flora of Hawaii

Category:Flora without expected TNC conservation status

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