Plant Doctor Archive

Abutilon

I WAS given this cutting by a friend for identification, but I'm stumped. None of my reference books help. All I know is it's a shrub. The leaf growth and form is not unlike mallow, with the leaves growing close together at the tips of shoots. An upright stem comes out near the top of the shoot with 20 or so downward-facing scarlet blooms. The flowers don't open fully and remain bell-like. The bark is reddish. I've had this stem in water for a month and it's staying brighter with buds continuing to form.

FROM your photo and sample your plant looks like an abutilon. I am not sure of the exact variety as there are so many available in garden centres. The abutilon, or Japanese lantern, is a great all-round garden shrub. The flowers are usually white, yellow, orange or pink and appear in the summer. The plant is evergreen and can be planted in full sun or semi-shade. It can grow to 2mH x 2mW. Some plants can be kept as a pot plant quiet easily.

Reproduced with permission from the former Weekend Gardener magazine. The views expressed here are not necessarily those of the RNZIH.