Hibiscus mutabilis
| Hibiscus mutabilis | |
| Light: |  |
| Moisture: |  |
| Hardiness: | 8 |
| Soil pH: | 5.6-8.4 |
| Height: | 10' |
| Width: | 10' |
| Blooms: | Late Summer-Mid Fall |
| Native to: | |
| Edible Rating: |  |
| Medicinal Rating: |  |
| Tea: | Yes |
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Hibiscus mutabilis (common name: cotton rose)
Propagation: Seed - sow early spring in a warm greenhouse. Germination is usually fairly rapid. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle. If growing them as annuals, plant them out into their permanent positions in early summer and protect them with a frame or cloche until they are growing away well. If hoping to grow them as perennials, then it is better to grow them on in the greenhouse for their first year and to plant them out in early summer of the following year.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame. Overwinter them in a warm greenhouse and plant out after the last expected frosts.
Cultivation: Prefers a well-drained humus rich fertile soil in full sun[1]. Prefers a warm but wet winter[2].
This species is not very hardy in Britain, it is frost-tender and top growth will be killed by even a slight frost. However, the roots are somewhat hardier and the plant can resprout from the base after a few degrees of frost[1][2]. The plant can probably be grown outdoors in the mildest areas of the country especially if given a good mulch in the winter. It is widely cultivated in tropical and occasionally in temperate areas as an ornamental plant, there are many named varieties[1].
Range: E. Asia - China, Japan.
Habitat: Thickets in S. Japan[3].
Edibility: Leaves[4]. The leaves contain rutin, but the report does not say what quantity[5].
Root - it is edible but very fibrousy[6]. Mucilaginous, without very much flavour[6].
Medicinal: The leaves are anodyne, antidotal, demulcent, expectorant and refrigerant[5]. With the flowers, they are applied to burns, swellings and other skin problems[7][5][8].
The flowers are antiphlogistic, depurative, febrifuge, pulmonary and stimulant[7][8]. A decoction is used in the treatment of lung ailments[5][8].
Usage: A fibre from the bark is used for making cords and rope[9][10].
Pollinators: Insects
Soil: Can grow in light, medium, and heavy soils.
Drainage: Prefers well drained soil.
Seed Ripens: Early Fall-Late Fall
Flower Type: Hermaphrodite
Links
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Huxley, Anthony. The New Royal Horticultural Society Dictionary of Gardening. MacMillan Press, 1992.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Phillips, Roger and Martyn Rix. Conservatory and Indoor Plants Volumes 1 & 2. Pan Books, London, 1998.
- ↑ Ohwi, Jisaburo. Flora of Japan. Smithsonian Institution, 1965.
- ↑ Kunkel, Günther. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books, 1984.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Duke, James and Edward Ayensu. Medicinal Plants of China. Reference Publications, 1985.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Cribb, Alan and Joan Cribb. Wild Food in Australia. Fontana, 1976.
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Revolutionary Health Committee of Hunan Province. A Barefoot Doctors Manual. Running Press.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Chopra, R. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants. Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi, 1986.
- ↑ Stuart, George. Chinese Materia Medica. Taipei Southern Materials Centre.
- ↑ Manandhar, Narayan. Plants and People of Nepal. Timber Press, 2002.