Hibiscus

Where it grows

The Chinese hibiscus has been grown so long in cultivation that its wild origin is unclear, probably East Asia and Polynesia. It now thrives in every frost-free garden on Earth, from Florida to Singapore. The roselle, H. sabdariffa, grown for its tart calyces, is a separate species from West Africa.

How to recognise it

A spreading evergreen shrub one to three metres tall with glossy, dark green, toothed leaves. The trumpet-shaped flowers have five overlapping petals up to fifteen centimetres across and a long staminal column protruding well beyond them. Each individual bloom lasts only a day but the plant flowers continuously.

Garden & cultural uses

Hibiscus is the national flower of Malaysia, Haiti, and South Korea, and the state flower of Hawaii. Roselle calyces, dried and steeped, make the deep red drinks called karkade in Egypt, agua de jamaica in Mexico, and bissap in West Africa, packed with anthocyanins and vitamin C.

In symbolism

In Polynesian and Indian cultures, a hibiscus worn behind the right ear signals an available wearer, behind the left, a taken one.