Plants in Israel | Hibiscus syriacus

Hibiscus syriacus, Shrub Althea, Rose-of-Sharon,
היביסקוס

Scientific name:   Hibiscus syriacus L.
Scientific name:   Althaea frutex Hort. ex Mill.
Common name:   Shrub Althea,Rose of Sharon, Rose-of-Sharon
Hebrew name:   היביסקוס
Family:   Malvaceae, חלמיתיים


Life form:   Deciduous, flowering shrub, overal vased shape
Stems:   Height 200-300cm; Spread 150-200cm; multi-stemmed with lots of vertical branches; gray bark
Leaves:   Alternate, simple, deciduous,3-lobed, dentate
Inflorescence:   Floriferous, solitary or paired from leaf axils
Flowers:   5 petals, white, pink, violet, single or double flowers
Fruits / pods:   Capsule, brown, 5-valved
Origin:   China, India


Derivation of the botanical name:

Hibiscus, ancient Greek and Latin name for some mallow-like plant.

syriacus, from Syria.

  • The standard author abbreviation L. is used to indicate Carl Linnaeus (1707 – 1778), a Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, the father of modern taxonomy.
  • The standard author abbreviation hort. is used to indicate hortorum (of gardens), or hortulanorum (of gardeners) , referring to a name whose origin or authors are unknown.
  • The standard author abbreviation Mill. is used to indicate Philip Miller (1691 – 1771), a Scottish botanist.