Which plant is mostly found on older landscapes, is poorly available in most local nurseries, is closely related to okra and cotton, but is called a rose and produces showy fall flowers that turn from white to pink or red?
Give up?
The plant is commonly called Confederate rose. Some people call it cotton rose.
Confederate roses usually begin blooming in late summer and continue to flower well into fall.
Although it’s frequently referred to as Confederate rose, it’s not a member of the rose family. It belongs to the mallow family, which includes numerous ornamentals, cotton and okra.
It is a true hibiscus, but unlike many other ornamental hibiscus species, for some reason it is not usually found in most local garden centers. The plant finds its way into other landscapes simply by one gardener sharing a cutting with another gardener.
It’s easy to propagate. You can start new plants in the spring from seed or from 8-inch-long terminal cuttings taken during spring, summer and early fall. Cuttings can be rooted in a conventional propagation bed or even in a glass of water.
Here are some forms of Confederate roses:
●The cultivar known as ‘Rubus’ has deep pink flowers.
● ‘Plena’ has double white flowers that change to pink or red on the second day.
●The older, original types have double flowers that open white in the morning and gradually turn pink in the afternoon.
Even though the Confederate rose, with its cotton- or okra-like leaves, is not very impressive during spring and summer, you may find it a worthwhile landscape plant as it produces large flowers (some up to 6 inches across) in late summer and fall.
With proper care, a Confederate rose should grow into a 15-foot-tall bush during a single season. But expect the entire plant to be killed to the ground during the winter.
It usually sprouts rapidly from the base of the plant the following spring.
Be careful — too much fertilizer can result in lots of leaves but few blooms.
Larry Williams is an agent at the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension office in Crestview.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: WILLIAMS: The Confederate rose is not a rose