The complete chloroplast genome of <i>Malva cathayensis</i> M.G.Gilbert, Y.Tang &amp; Dorr 2007 and its phylogenetic analysis

<i>Malva cathayensis</i>, a wild medicinal and edible Malvaceae species, lacked genomic data until now. In this study, we presented its first complete chloroplast genome (158,793 bp), featuring a quadripartite structure: 87,215 bp LSC, 20,766 bp SSC, and two 25,406 bp IRs. The genome contains 129 genes (85 protein-coding, 36 tRNA, 8 rRNA) with 37.1% GC content. Phylogenetic analysis revealed two <i>Malva clades</i>, with <i>M. cathayensis</i> grouping alongside <i>M. crispa, M. verticillata</i>, and <i>M. parviflora</i>. This study provides essential molecular data for <i>Malva</i>'s evolutionary relationships and diversification, enabling future comparative genomic research in this genus.