Cranberry hibiscus (Hibiscus acetosella) By Hermann Luyken [CC0] (Photo Credits)
The display sign in epicurious southbank gardens about the benefits of growing Cranberry Hibiscus
Close up of the leaves of the Cranberry Hibiscus
Cranberry Hibiscus can easily be trained into a hedge when growing a few together. The colour can be a great addition to your backyard
Hibiscus - Cranberry
Hibiscus acetosella
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A very nutritious vegetable. The young leaves have a pleasantly tart flavour, and eaten either raw or cooked, they retain their colour. The leaves contain oxalic acid, and should only be eaten once a week. Unlike Aibika, it is not particularly mucilaginous. Flowers are used to make teas or other drinks where they contribute colour rather than taste. In Central America the flowers are combined with ice, sugar, lemon, or lime juice and water to make a purple lemonade.This plant is a short-lived perennial shrub in the subtropics and tropics but can be grown as an annual in cooler climates. It grows rapidly to 1.7 m high with deeply cut leaves similar to Japanese maple. The leaf colour of deep cranberry red is highly ornamental; the flowers are a small, very pretty, rose-pink hibiscus-type. Cranberry hibiscus is a hardy plant that thrives when it is warm and wet; it prefers full sun but will grow in partial shade. It needs ample water, rich, fertile, well-drained soil that is kept mulched and a pH of between 6.1 and 6.5.The vivid leaf colour makes this a good choice as a background plant in ornamental beds.
Other Names: African rosemallow, false roselle, maroon mallow, Florida cranberry
$16.90
Grown From Cutting
Max Height (when in the ground with good conditions) 1-2m
Plants required to Pollinate 1 (Self Pollinating)
Can it Handle Frosts? Sometimes
Amount of leaves in Winter? All Leaves (Evergreen)
Quarantine Restrictions to these Areas WA
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