5013.000 Hibiscus L.

Description of the genus

Annual, biennial or perennial herbs or shrubs. Leaves simple and palmately lobed or digitately compound. Flowers usually solitary and axillary, but often forming terminal inflorescences by reduction of the upper leaves, yellow with a dark centre or red, pink, purplish or white. Epicalyx of 5-20 bracts, rarely 0. Calyx with 5 lobes or (rarely) 5-10 teeth. Ovary 4-5-locular; each loculus with 3-many ovules. Style 5-branched. Fruit a loculicidally dehiscent capsule.

Derivation of name: Greek name for the marsh mallow

Worldwide: c.300 species occurring in warm temperate and tropical areas of the world

Mozambique: 43 taxa.

The larvae of the following species of insect eat species of this genus:
Abantis paradisea (Paradise skipper)
Filodes costivitralis (Window pearl)
Hibiscus physaloides

Links to taxa:     View: living plant images - herbarium specimen images - all images for this genus

SpeciesFZ divisionsContent
aethiopicus L. var. ovatus Harv.MDescription, Image
allenii Sprague & Hutch.N,MSDescription, Image
altissimus HornbyN,Z,MS,GI,MDescription, Image
aponeurus Sprague & Hutch.N
articulatus Hochst. ex A. Rich.N,Z,TDescription, Image
barbosae ExellM
burtt-davyi Dunkley[NrEnd]MSDescription, Image
caesius GarckeT,MSDescription, Image
cannabinus L.N,Z,T,MS,GI,MDescription, Image
debeerstii De Wild. & T. DurandN,T
diversifolius Jacq. subsp. rivularis (Bremek. & Oberm.) ExellN,Z,T,GI,MDescription, Image
dongolensis DelileT,MDescription, Image
engleri K. Schum.MDescription, Image
fuscus GarckeZ,T,MS
kirkii Mast.Z,MS,GI,M
lobatus (Murray) KuntzeZ,T,MSDescription, Image
mastersianus HiernT
meyeri Harv. subsp. meyeri MDescription, Image
micranthus L.f.N,T,MS,GI,MDescription, Image
migeodii ExellN,Z,MS,GIDescription, Image
mossambicensis Gonç.N,MS
nigricaulis BakerMSDescription, Image
ovalifolius (Forssk.) VahlMS,GI,MDescription, Image
palmatus Forssk.T,GI,M
panduriformis Burm. f.N,T,MSDescription, Image
pedunculatus L.f.M
physaloides Guill. & Perr.N,Z,MS,GI,MDescription, Image
platycalyx Mast.
praeteritus R.A. DyerT,MSDescription, Image
pusillus Thunb.MDescription, Image
rhabdotospermus GarckeT,MSImage
rhodanthus GürkeN,TDescription, Image
rupicola Exell[NrEnd]T
sabdariffa L.Z,T
schinzii GürkeMS,MDescription, Image
seineri Ulbr. ex Engl.N,T,MS
shirensis Sprague & Hutch.N,Z,MSDescription, Image
sidiformis Baill.T,MS,GIDescription, Image
surattensis L.N,Z,MS,GI,MDescription, Image
tiliaceus L.N,Z,MS,GI,MDescription, Image
torrei Baker f.[End]N
trionum L.GI,MDescription, Image
vitifolius L. subsp. vitifolius N,Z,T,MS,GI,MDescription, Image

Other sources of information about Hibiscus:

Our websites:

Flora of Botswana: Hibiscus
Flora of Caprivi: Hibiscus
Flora of Caprivi: cultivated Hibiscus
Flora of Malawi: Hibiscus
Flora of Mozambique: cultivated Hibiscus
Flora of Zambia: Hibiscus
Flora of Zimbabwe: Hibiscus
Flora of Zimbabwe: cultivated Hibiscus

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Hibiscus
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Hibiscus
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Hibiscus
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Hibiscus
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Hibiscus
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Hibiscus
JSTOR Plant Science: Hibiscus
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Hibiscus
Plants of the World Online: Hibiscus
Tropicos: Hibiscus
Wikipedia: Hibiscus

Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave 2007-24

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2024). Flora of Mozambique: Genus page: Hibiscus.
https://www.mozambiqueflora.com/speciesdata/genus.php?genus_id=942, retrieved 19 March 2024

Site software last modified: 12 October 2020 11:11pm
Terms of use