caps n' turbans

   
  a couple of posts ago, i wrote about the fabulous althaea bush....the carefree, long-blooming (asian)hibiscus family shrub that has been grown here in louisiana for the past coupla centuries.....i'd just like to add 1) that althaeas need as much sun as possible in order to thrive, 2) that hummingbirds nectar off of them, and 3) the pure-white, single flowered form -- as well as any of the pale-blooming forms (double-white, double-blush) -- are perfect shrub selections for 'moonlight gardens,' gardens or portions thereof which we use/enjoy at night.

     so now let's move on to Malvaviscus, another genus from the hibiscus family. this is the genus which contains two very useful plants for louisiana....................

                 (top, M. drummondii (Turk's Cap), bottom, M. pendulaflorus (Sultan's Turban)

     Malvaviscus is strictly a sub-tropical/tropical american genus containing only 20 or so species. here in the u.s., we have only 2 native species. the first -- and best-distributed -- is turk's cap, Malvaviscus drummondii (some references classify it as a sub-species: M. arboreus drummondii), also known (in texas) as "Drummond's Wax-mallow." this stoloniferous shrub will run like a banshee in full sun, where it forms large, dense, 4' colonies. make sure you have a lot of space -- or just plan on weeding a lot of it out -- should you decide to site it in full sun. personally, i like it better in the shade, where it lays down a bit into a 2.5' tall groundcover. it still runs, but not nearly so hard as in the sun. planted around the roots of shade trees (a notorious zone of high competition for nutrients and moisture), it performs beautifully, expanding to an 8-10' diameter, long-lived colony which will easily withstand drought, flood, whatever.

     the downside re: shade siting is that the plant does not bloom near so much as in the sun. that's ok by me, for it blooms plenty enough to be pretty. bloom season duration varies from year to year. in years following warm winters, it begins blooming in april and continues through august or september. but following cold winters, like this past one for example, it hasn't begun blooming yet.

     note from the photos that the blooms of both Malvaviscus species are twisted shut! kinda weird, but ultimately quite effective from both architectural and wildlife perspectives. these bright red, twisted forms off excellent structural contrast against the wide open blooms of other companion plants in the garden. also, because the blooms are virtually shut, they hold far more nectar than regular hibiscus flowers, rendering them most attractive to hummingbirds and butterflies.

     turk's cap natively ranges along the northern gulf coast from florida west to texas; and also southward into mexico and cuba. here in louisiana, we find it in the wild in chenieres -- live oak-dominated forests right on the coast. gardenwise, it is said to be winter/root-hardy all the way up through shreveport.

     the second native-american species is called sultan's turban (Malvaviscus pendulaflorus; referred to as a sub-species, M. arboreus penduliflorus, in some references). Unlike turk's cap, sultan's turban is a clumping (non-running) shrub, usually growing to about 6-7' in height and width. unlike turk's cap, the blooms of sultan's turban hang down (= penduliflorus) rather than stand erect. they're also about 3X larger than those of turk's cap.

     distributionwise, sultan's turban occurs natively only in south texas in the u.s.; but then continues southward throughout all of mexico and into south america. so it's a bona fide tropical plant as opposed to turk's cap, which has managed to adapt northward into the sub-tropical zone of the u.s.

     nevertheless, in the garden sultan's turban has proven winter/root-hardy throughout the entire gulf rim of the u.s. .......... goody for us gulf-rimmers.............unfortunately -- like most flowering tropicals -- it does not begin blooming until the fall months...........the particular strain in our garden does not commence blooming until mid-october........awfully late as far as i'm concerned........on the other hand, i've seen other genetic strains in other gardens/cities begin as early as late-august..........much, much better.........in the future it'd be a good idea for some horticulturist to select the earliest blooming strain and clone it via cuttings........they could name it 'early girl' or whatever.

     pink, and even white-flowered forms have been found and cultivated in both of these species/subspecies. texas horticulturist greg grant has developed/hybirdized his own pink-blooming form of turk's cap -- and what a winner it is..............he's also developed a hybrid cross  between turk's cap and sultan's turban -- an incredible thing he named 'big mamma'.............it's got the clumping-shrub habit and pendulous flowers of sultan's turban, and the long-bloom season of turk's cap........ what a plant!