Common Mallow
Broadleaf weed
Common mallow (Malva neglecta) is a low-growing broadleaf weed in the mallow family, also known as cheeseweed or buttonweed because of its small, round, cheese-wheel fruit. Gardeners and growers notice it because it settles into lawns, garden beds, and field edges and becomes surprisingly stubborn once it anchors a deep taproot.
How to identify it
Look for rounded to kidney-shaped leaves with shallow, scalloped lobes and toothed edges, carried on long stalks that attach near the center of the leaf. The plant sprawls out flat from a central crown, forming a mat, though stems can lift upward in taller cover. Small five-petaled flowers appear in the leaf joints and range from white to pale pink or lavender, each with faint darker veins. The fruit is a flat, button-like disk that breaks into wedge-shaped segments resembling a tiny wheel of cheese, and mature plants pull up on a tough, stout taproot.
Where it grows
Common mallow grows in lawns, vegetable gardens, landscape beds, cultivated fields, roadsides, and just about any disturbed or compacted soil. It is most active from spring through fall and behaves as an annual, biennial, or short-lived perennial depending on climate. It spreads entirely by seed, and those seeds can stay viable in the soil for many years, so a single plant that sets seed can seed problems for seasons to come.
Why it is a problem
Its spreading mat shades out turf and young crop seedlings and competes for water and nutrients, while the deep taproot and waxy leaf surface make established plants hard to remove. It can also serve as a host for certain plant viruses and rust diseases that affect nearby crops. Because its long-lived seed bank keeps replenishing, letting even a few plants mature to seed undoes much of the season's control effort.
How to manage it
The most reliable approach is to pull or dig young plants while the taproot is still shallow, removing the whole crown so it does not regrow, and doing so before flowers set seed. In garden beds, a layer of mulch blocks light and greatly reduces new seedlings, and shallow hoeing catches those that do emerge. In lawns, thick, healthy turf maintained through proper mowing height, balanced feeding, and correct watering crowds out mallow before it establishes. Focus on prevention by clearing plants in spring and fall and never allowing them to seed, since draining the seed bank is what brings long-term relief.
Commonly confused with
It is often confused with ground ivy, which has square stems, a minty smell, and a creeping rooting habit rather than a taproot, and with young geranium or cranesbill seedlings, which have more deeply divided leaves. Related mallow species such as little mallow look similar but tend to grow more upright.
General guidance for US lawns and gardens, focused on prevention and non-chemical control. For a confirmed identification and options specific to your area, contact your local Cooperative Extension office. Page updated Aug 4, 2026.