Hibiscus acetosella
| Hibiscus acetosella | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 10 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Hibiscus acetosella (common name: false roselle)
Propagation: Seed - sow early spring in a warm greenhouse. Germination is usually quite rapid. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and plant them out into their permanent positions in early summer. Give them some protection until they are growing away well.
A sowing outdoors in situ during April might work, though if the summer is cool the plants might not flower and set seed.
Cultivation: Prefers a well-drained humus rich fertile soil in full sun[1].
A frost-tender plant but it can be grown as an annual in temperate zones[1].
Range: E. and C. Africa.
Edibility: Leaves - raw or cooked. Added to salads or used in soups, stews etc[2]. They can be cooked with other foods to give them an acid sorrel-like flavour[2].
Root - it is edible but is very fibrousy[3]. Mucilaginous, without very much flavour[3].
Pollinators: Insects
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Facciola, Stephen. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, 1990.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Cribb, Alan and Joan Cribb. Wild Food in Australia. Fontana, 1976.