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Hibiscus heterophyllus

Common name:	Native Rosella	Family:	Malvaceae
Author:	Vent.	Botanical references:	200, 265
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	Australia - New South Wales, Queensland.
Habitat:	Moist eucalyptus forests, jungle gullies and rainforest edges[144, 193].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	2	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	0

Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	heterophyllus = differently leaved;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Malvales. Mallow family

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen shrub growing to 1.8m. It is hardy to zone 10 and is frost tender. It is in leaf all year. The flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Insects. We rate it 2/5 for edibility and 0/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It requires moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Sunny Edge, Dappled Shade, By Walls, By South Wall, By West Wall.

Edible Uses

Flowers; Leaves; Root.

Leaves and young shoots - raw or cooked. Pleasantly acid[144, 177, 193]. An excellent spinach substitute, the boiled leaves losing their acidity[193].
Flowers and flower buds - raw or cooked[157]. A very mild flavour[144].
Root - it is edible but very fibrousy[144]. Mucilaginous, without very much flavour[144]. The roots of young plants are used[193].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

None known

Other Uses

Fibre.

A tough fibre obtained from the stems is used for making nets etc[156, 193].

Cultivation details

Prefers a well-drained humus rich fertile soil in full sun[200]. Suitable for waterside plantings[200].
This species is not very hardy in Britain, it is unlikely to succeed outdoors even in the mildest areas of the country. However, it might be possible to grow it as a half-hardy annual, to flower in its first year from seed.

Propagation

Seed - sow early spring in a warm greenhouse. Germination is usually fairly rapid. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle. If growing them as annuals, plant them out into their permanent positions in early summer and protect them with a frame or cloche until they are growing away well. If hoping to grow them as perennials, then it is better to grow them on in the greenhouse for their first year and to plant them out in early summer of the following year.
Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame. Overwinter them in a warm greenhouse and plant out after the last expected frosts.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for the family Malvaceae.

[CHINA] Draft Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[144] Cribb. A. B. and J. W. Wild Food in Australia. Fontana 1976 ISBN 0-00-634436-4
A very good pocket guide.

[156] Cribb. A. B. and J. W. Useful Wild Plants in Australia. William Collins Pty Ltd. Sidney 1981 ISBN 0-00-216441-8
A very readable book.

[157] Wrigley. J. W. and Fagg. M. Australian Native Plants. Collins. (Australia) 1988 ISBN 0-7322-0021-0
A lovely book, written in order to encourage Australian gardeners to grow their native plants. A little bit of information for the plant project.

[177] Kunkel. G. Plants for Human Consumption. Koeltz Scientific Books 1984 ISBN 3874292169
An excellent book for the dedicated. A comprehensive listing of latin names with a brief list of edible parts.

[193] Low. T. Wild Food Plants of Australia. Angus and Robertson. 1989 ISBN 0-207-14383-8
Well presented, clear information and good photographs. An interesting read for the casual reader as well as the enthusiast

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[265] Carolin. R. & Tindale. M. Flora of the Sydney Region Reed. Australia. 1993 ISBN 0730104001
Concise flora with little beyond an extensive key, species descriptions, very brief habitat description.

Readers Comments

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Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
Blagdon Cross, Ashwater, Beaworthy, Devon, EX21 5DF, UK.
Website: www.pfaf.org Phone: 0845 458 4719/_44(0) 1208 872963

This page (UK) http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/cgi-bin/pfaf/arr_html?Hibiscus+heterophyllus
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We make no claims of magical effects or supernatural powers for any item in this catalog. In spite of legendary attributes or occult and craft tradition, such items are offered as curios only and beliefs concerning their magical effectiveness are related only for historical interest.