The leaves resemble those of hemp (Cannabis sativa), hence the specific epithet cannabina ("hemp-like").

Lower leaves are petiolate, hairy and almost completely subdivided in three-five segments, linear or linear-lanceolate, toothed or lobed, up to 2 centimetres (0.79 in) wide and 8 centimetres (3.1 in) long.

Althaea cannabina grows wild in central and southern Europe and in the Mediterranean Basin, from Portugal, north Africa and east to Turkey - except Balearic Islands, Corsica, Crete and Chipre - up to central Asia.

[2] These plants grow at an altitude of 0–800 metres (0–2,625 ft) above sea level.

They prefer coastal thickets, forest edges, meadows, weedy places, roads, wasteland, pastures and parks, especially with rocky and calcareous soils.