Scientific Name:
Hibiscus syriacus
Pronunciation:
hye-BISS-kiss seer-ee-AY-kus
Common Name:
hardy hibiscus, rose of Sharon
Family Name:
Malvaceae
Plant Type:
Shrub - deciduous
Key ID Features:
Shrub upright, vase-shaped, stems gray; leaves alternate, ovate, most blades 5-8cm long x 2-4cm wide, coursely toothed, palmately veined, 3 major lobes towards apex on most cvs., light green, stipules 4-7mm long x <0.5mm wide; flowers trumpet-shaped to head-like with multiple petals, 5-10cm wide, 5 to many petals, solitary or cymose. Winter ID: branches whitish, upright; persistent 5-valved capsules; buds alternate with small hairs; leaf scar crescent shaped with many bundle scars in 3 or 4 groups; hair-like stipules may persist.
Habit:
Upright
Form:
Vase
Texture:
Medium
Mature Height:
2 - 3m
Mature Spread:
1.5 - 2.0m
Growth Rate:
Moderate
Origin:
S.E. Asia / Japan / China, South Asia / India
Hardiness Rating:
Zone 5: (-29 to -23 °C)
Exposure:
Full sun, Part sun/part shade
Soil/Growing Medium:
Humus rich, Well-drained
Landscape Uses:
Attract butterflies, Fall interest, Hedge row, Mixed shrub border, Screening, Summer interest
Additional Info:
Google'. Cultivars shown or on campus may include H. syriacus ‘Ardens’, H. ‘Jeanne d’Arc’, H. ‘Red Heart’, H. 'Notwoodtwo', H. 'Minrosa', and H. 'Purpureus Variegatus'
Leaf Morphology:
Form:
Simple, Lobed
Arrangement:
Alternate
Texture/Venation:
Soft flexible, Palmate venation
Surfaces:
Glabrous, Lustrous
Colour in Summer:
Green, Dark-green
Colour in Fall:
Yellow
Shapes:
Ovate, Rhomboidal
Apices:
Acute
Bases:
Cuneate
Margins:
Dentate, Incised
Additional Info:
to 10cm long
Inflorescence Type:
Cyme, Floriferous
Flower Morphology:
Flowers perfect
Number Of Petals:
5
Corolla Shape:
Campanulate
Ovary Position:
Superior
Colour (petals):
Showy, White, Blue, Violet, Red (depends on cv.; often with darker centers; yellow anthers on white filaments)
Flower Time at Peak:
Sep, Oct
Additional Info:
May appear solitary; stamens on column around style; stigma with 5 branches
Fruit Type:
Capsule, Aborted (hybrids) or absent
Fruit Colour:
Brown
Fruiting Time:
Oct, Nov
Additional Info:
Fruit insignificant, Persistent
Bark Morphology:
Smooth, Lightly fissured, Multi-stem trunk
Bark or Stem Colour:
Grey, Brown
Leaf Scar Shape:
Crescent shaped
Organ Modifications:
Stipule, leafy
Propagation:
Softwood cuttings, Layering
Pest Susceptibility:
Beetles or weevils, Canker or sap rot, Earwigs, Fungal leaf spot, Rust, Virus (Deer resistant, Drought tolerant)
Course(s):
- HORT 1155
- Level 2 Apprenticeship
Location(s):
- (NRY) NuRserY
- (ONE) Overpass North side East : cvs. Red Heart, Jeanne d'Arc, Purpureus Variegatus
- (ONW) Overpass North side West : cv. Ardens