What are the characteristics of the cotton rose hibiscus? A complete guide
Other names for the cotton rose hibiscus
The cotton rose hibiscus is also known as hibiscus flower, frost-repelling flower, wood lotus, ground hibiscus, and Chinese wood, and is native to China. It is a deciduous shrub in the mallow family (Malvaceae), genus Hibiscus.
Growth habits of the cotton rose hibiscus
The cotton rose hibiscus prefers a warm, humid environment with plenty of sunlight, tolerates partial shade slightly, and has a certain degree of cold hardiness. It is not strict about soil, but grows best in fertile, moist, well-drained sandy soil. It can be planted in a sunny spot in the courtyard or beside a pond. Normally its care is fairly minimal; pay attention to watering during droughts, and each winter or spring dig a trench around the plant and apply some decomposed organic fertilizer, then water promptly and cover the soil.
In cold regions, some tender branches of plants grown in the ground will freeze to death in winter; there is no need to worry about them, as new branches will sprout after the temperature warms up in spring. Pruning is done after flowering. The tree shape can be pruned either into a tree form or into a shrub form, but either way, dead branches, weak branches, and inward-growing branches should be cut away to ensure good ventilation and light penetration inside the canopy. The cotton rose hibiscus can also be grown in pots; the potting soil should be loose and fertile with good drainage and aeration, and during the growing season there must be enough water to meet its growth needs. In winter, move it indoors to overwinter, maintaining0～10°C to ensure its dormancy.
Morphological characteristics of the cotton rose hibiscus
The cotton rose hibiscus is a deciduous shrub or small tree, reaching a height of1mmany. The branches are densely covered with stellate hairs. The leaves are alternate, broadly ovate or roundly ovate, palmately3～5shallowly lobed, with tips acute or acuminate, and stellate down on both surfaces. The flowers are large, borne singly at the tips of branches and in leaf axils, in colors such as red, pink, and white, with a flowering period of8～10months. The capsule is flattened-spherical and10～11ripens in months. In colder regions, it withers at the end of autumn, and in the following year new branches and buds sprout again from the perennial roots. It is clump-forming, only1mtall. But where winter temperatures are higher, it can reach as high as7～8mand have a diameter of20cm. The leaves are large, broadly ovate, with3～5lobes, the lobes triangular, the base heart-shaped, the leaf margins bluntly serrated, and both surfaces hairy. The flowers are borne singly between the tips of branches and the leaf axils, and may be white, or initially pale red then turning deep red, as well as large red double, white double, half-white half-peach-red double, and red-and-white mixed forms.
Complete list of cotton rose hibiscus varieties
Common varieties of cotton rose hibiscus
White cotton rose: bears white flowers
Pink cotton rose: flower color pink
Red cotton rose: large red flowers, large and double, closely resembling a peony
Yellow cotton rose: also known as yellow mo, yellow flowers, bell-shaped, with a dark purple center, large and double, closely resembling a peony, a rare variety
Drunken cotton rose: also known as "three-drunk cotton rose," opening white in the early morning, turning peach-red at noon, and becoming deep red by evening, a rare and precious variety.
Application value of the cotton rose hibiscus
11. Ornamental value. The cotton rose hibiscus blooms in late autumn, has a long flowering period, blooms abundantly, and has many varieties. Its flower color and flower form vary richly from variety to variety, making it an excellent ornamental flowering tree. Because its flowers are large and colorful, it has been planted in gardens in China since ancient times, and can be planted singly or in groups beside walls, along roadsides, and in front of halls. It is especially suitable for planting near water; when in bloom, the shimmering water and the reflections of the flowers set each other off beautifully, making it particularly enchanting, hence the name "hibiscus reflected in water." In addition, planting it in courtyards, on slopes, along roadsides, at forest edges, and in front of buildings, or growing it as a flowering hedge, is very suitable. In the cold north, it can also be grown in pots for ornament.
22. Industrial uses. The stem bark contains cellulose39%. The stem bark fiber is flexible and water-resistant, and can be used as raw material for cables and textiles, and also for making paper.
33. Medicinal value. The flowers, leaves, and roots of the cotton rose hibiscus are rich in medicinal components such as flavonoids, hyperoside, inulin glycosides, phenolics, and reducing sugars, all of which can be used as medicine. It can clear heat and detoxify, reduce swelling and drain pus, and cool the blood and stop bleeding. It is used for lung-heat cough, excessive menstruation, and leukorrhea; externally it is used to treat carbuncles, sores, and boils, mastitis, lymphadenitis, mumps, burns and scalds, venomous snake bites, and bruises. The well-known "Yulu San" and "hibiscus flower oil" are made from the flowers and leaves of the cotton rose hibiscus.
Appreciation of cotton rose hibiscus pictures