The trailing abutilon resembles a wind chime, swaying gracefully in the breeze.
The trailing abutilon, also known as the hanging wind chime flower, is an evergreen trailing plant with soft vines and dancing heart-shaped green leaves. Its flowers are unusual, growing in the leaf axils on long stalks and hanging downward, with heart-shaped red sepals; the petals stay closed and emerge from the calyx, while the brown stamens extend past the petals, shaped like a wind chime, dainty in posture and bright in color, swaying in the wind with a flowing, elegant motion, bright and lovely, truly "a wind chime among the green leaves, revealing its fair face as it drifts."
Trailing abutilon
Aliases: trailing abutilon, red-veined abutilon, lantern wind chime, red heart spitting gold, weeping wind chime flower, lantern wind chime, lantern hibiscus, wind chime hibiscus, Brazilian abutilon, red-veined abutilon, trailing bellflower, etc. Native to Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay, and also found in China.
Trailing abutilon
Hanging wind chime flower: an evergreen, semi-woody, vine-like shrub. The branches are slender and long with many side shoots, making it very suitable for growing as a hanging basket ornamental. Leaves alternate, with slender petioles. Leaves green, 5-10 cm long, heart-shaped, with pointed tips and bluntly serrated margins, sometimes lobed. Flowers grow in the leaf axils, with slender pedicels, and hang downward. The calyx is red, about 2.5 cm long, half enclosing petals about 4 cm long. There are 5 petals, yellow. The stamens are dark brown, extending about 1.3 cm beyond the petals. The corolla is shaped like a wind chime, and also like a red heart spitting gold. It can bloom all year round.
Trailing abutilon
The hanging wind chime flower is native to Brazil in South America. It likes a warm, humid environment with plenty of sunlight, and also tolerates partial shade. It is not cold-tolerant and not drought-tolerant, and grows best in loose, airy soil rich in humus. When grown in a pot, a support should be set up for it to climb. During the growing season, keep the potting soil moist, but do not let water accumulate. In the hot summer season, spray the plant in the morning and evening to increase air humidity. Apply a decomposed liquid fertilizer once a month. During cultivation, pinch the tips to encourage branching, so that it blooms more, and control the plant's height to keep it looking attractive. In winter, move it indoors to a spot with plenty of sunlight; it can bloom normally at no lower than 15°C. It is often propagated by cuttings and layering.