Wednesday 17 May 2017

Growing Cotton Rosemallow (Hibiscus Mutabilis) In My Garden.

Previously, I did a post on this flower/plant and at that time, I didn't know its name. The friend who gave me the baby plant called it Rose of Sharon and I named it Rose of Sharon in that post. If you are interested, you can click here to read about it. The plant was removed from my garden when it was badly infested with mealy bugs.
In December 2016, we visited our friends again and we came home with 2 stem cuttings from their garden.
Brought the cuttings back and planted them in a small plastic pot.

I found out later that this is actually Hibiscus Mutabilis and some of the common names are the Confederate Rose, Dixie Rosemallow and Cotton Rosemallow.  I like the name Cotton Rosemallow, so I will refer to it as Cotton Rosemallow in this post.
The leaves and flowers are claimed to have medicinal benefits and are used for the treating of swellings and skin infections. Some even used it to facilitate delivery during labour.
Cotton Rosemallow plant is very easy to propagate from stem cuttings and is a fast growing plant. It can grow quite tall and needs constant trimming to keep within the desired height.
My pot of Cotton Rosemallow gets a few hours of sun daily. It is grown in a pot with normal garden soil with good drainage.
Flower buds started to appear after 3 - 4 months.
The stalks of the flower buds increased in length to raise the flowers above the leaves.
Opening of the flower bud. Taken on a sunny morning.
A blooming flower bud taken after a heavy downpour. You can see the wet leaves.
A fully opened flower. It first appeared white in the morning.
The whole flower is white with yellow centre.
A full bloomed flower measures about 5 to 6 inches in diameter.
A close up view of the yellow stigma and yellow stamens.
My Cotton Rosemallow plant is now about 5 feet tall. The above  photo was taken in the afternoon after the rain stopped.
When the flower opens in the morning, it is white.
By midday, it slowly changes from white to light pink.
The light pink then turns to deep pink. This photo was taken at about 2.30 pm. By late evening, it will turned to dark pink.
This plant is easily prone to mealy bugs infection. Can you see the white powdery bugs on my plant? I quickly mixed the fermented enzyme liquid with a generous amount of  curry powder. I then sprayed the mixture on the bugs and infected parts. After that most of the white powdery bugs were gone. I sprayed again and hopefully the bugs will stay away from my plants.
One morning, I was blessed with 2 flowers blooming at the same time.
Top left photo - 2 white flowers in the early morning at 7.45 am.
Top right photo - by 11.45 am, there were traces of  light pink.
Bottom left photo - by 1.35 pm, the flowers have turned to a lovely pink.
Bottom right photo - by 2.30 pm, the flowers in deeper pink.
Linking to Floral Bliss.

Enjoy the wife you married as a young man!
Lovely as an angel, beautiful as a rose -
don't ever quit taking delight in her body.
Never take her love for granted!
(Proverbs 5:18-19, The Message-MSG)

44 comments:

  1. It is a lovely flower we have it in Europe too

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  2. You have an amazing talent with plants and flowers, Nancy! So beautiful! Thank you so much for sharing, and I hope you are having a lovely week. :)

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  3. Wow - these are from a paradise!!! So beautiful - thank you for sharing Nancy!

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  4. Nancy, what a beautiful flower! You can enjoy two colors in one day :)

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    1. Thank you, Phong Hong. I love these flowers and I have to plant it again. Have a wonderful day!

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  5. Hello Nancy!:) Thank you for taking us through the various stages of this gorgeous plant. I'm delighted for you that it is doing so well, and thank you for sharing the beauty of the flower changing colours throughout the day.
    throughout the day.

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    1. Thank you, dear. I am glad you enjoyed the photos. Have a beautiful day!

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  6. Wow, so it changes colors!!! I have never heard of such a thing, what a special post today. It is truly gorgeous! You can grow anything, you are the plant doctor!

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    1. Thank you, Ginny for your kind and lovely comments. I love this flower so I refused to give up. I just have to grow another one. Lol!

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  7. So beautiful. You have an amazing green thumb, Nancy. You also do very well at photography.

    Have a fabulous day. ☺

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    1. Thank you, Sandee. It so happened that it is easy to grow and I love the flowers. Have a wonderful day!

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  8. Cotton rosemallow looks so pretty! I like how it changes colour. Will the pink colour change back to white colour?

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    1. Thank you, Mun. No, the flowers will not change back to white after it has turned to pink.

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  9. Amazing how their color changes!

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    Replies
    1. That is what makes the flower so special. Have a great day!

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  10. The flower is so beautiful..

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  11. Oh, these are beautiful flowers!

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  12. Thank you, Francisco. Have a good day!

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  13. You love gardening while I love reading, hee hee

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    1. I love reading too but that was when I was much younger. Now my eyes are not that good so turning more to gardening.

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  14. It generates such pretty flowers!

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    1. Thank you, William. The flowers are very attractive. Have a good day!

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  15. Cotton Rosemallow... cotton candy, roses and marshmallows? All beautiful things!

    Amazing the colour changes like that.

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  16. Thank you, for the beautiful discussion.

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