Anoda cristata

Anoda cristata is a species of flowering plant in the mallow family known by many common names, including spurred anoda, crested anoda, and violettas. Its exact native range is unclear but it probably spans Mexico and part or all of Central America. It is known throughout the rest of the Americas as well as Australia as an introduced species and often a noxious weed. This is an annual herb reaching a maximum erect height between one half and one meter. The stem is ridged and branching. The plant is variable in morphology, especially in leaf shape, but leaves are usually somewhat triangular, and hairy. Solitary flowers grow in the leaf axils. The flower is 2 to 3 centimeters wide, with pointed green to reddish sepals and lavender petals. The fruit is a bristly, disc-shaped capsule with 9 to 20 segments. Each segment produces a seed. This is sometimes an agricultural weed, especially of soybeans. It is tolerated as a weed of crop fields in parts of Mexico, and even fostered, because it is eaten and used as a source of medicinal remedies.