Here on the Mississippi Gulf Coast The end of September beginning of October brings the large showy flowers of the Hibiscus Mutabilis, AKA The Confederate Rose, or the older name of Cotton Rose.
This elegant heirloom plant has been grown all along the Gulf Coast for literally centuries. It originated in Southeastern China and traveled with the sea trade to the Gulf Coast very early on. The Cotton Rose is one plant that should always be included in any traditional South Coast historical garden recreation or restoration.
The one that most people in our area think of as the Confederate Rose is the fully double flowering one, which is the magical one that starts out as a pure white double bloom and then turns a medium pink followed by a deep red as the flower matures.
This is the type of plant that really stands out in a garden and always gives a bit of the old wow effect to any garden.
These plants form a beautiful medium to large bush and have very handsome leaves that have an almost tropical look. These plants are easy to grow and add such a wonderful touch to any zone 10-7 garden.
At the first frost they will loose their leaves and may be cut back, which allows for a thicker more compact plant the next year.
Easy to grow from seed and even easier to propagate from cuttings. Cuttings may be produced in either a sandy soil medium or just placed in water where they will usually root rather quickly.
The Confederate rose was for many years neglected and fell totally out of fashion. I find that many gardeners seem not to realize that plants go in and out of style in our gardens, but they do. When a plant goes out of favor, many times they will become impossible to find commercially and may even become extinct, because of the folly of current garden tastes. Now due to ease of cultivation and being both drought and neglect resistant this truly Southern garden jewel is making a nice return to the forefront of many modern gardens.
Just like the proverbial little black dress that goes in and out of style, this very old fashioned flowering bush has been in and out of popular acceptance since way before the War Between the States. According to what I was always told this plant was called the Confederate Rose due to the fact that after the Civil War it was very common for Southerners to take these flowers to the cemeteries to place on them on the graves of Confederate soldiers. So it was very commonly considered a funeral flower(as later the Calla Lily) and because of this connotation fell out of favor as a garden plant.
But now it seems to be making a come back and for me this is a great thing to see.
Michael W. Moses
Member
Gulf Hills Garden Club, Ocean Springs, MS
