Turk’s Cap ( Malvaviscus arbores var. drummondii )
I’m told this plant prefers some shade and blooms in the spring and fall down here. It is a native plant and therefore it is easy to grow. It will form a 9′ plant along the coast, but by the time you reach Nacogdoches it tops out at about 5′ in height. It may die back with frost but will return when the weather warms up. Hummingbirds love this plant as do bees and butterflies. The name comes from the shape of the flower whose petals form an interesting spiral pattern.
Blooming is from May through November. Pruning should be done late fall and then heavily mulch for the winter.
It has been know to grow near swamps and in very dry areas. Water amounts should not matter once this plant has settled in.
The crinkles you see in the leaves in the above picture are because the nursery had this plant sitting in full sun. It is also prone to mold in full sun. Plant it in part to full shade for best performance.
The leaves of Turk’s cap are used in herbal medicines. It has fruit which is edible, some bird or critter will likely make off with it from your bush.
[ Mexican Turk's Cap will not survive frosts. It is similar to Texas Turk's cap but with longer flowers and smaller leaves ]
Something tore my turk’s cap apart last week while I was out of town. Each branch has been ripped down. I think a squirrel was looking for next material or something?
Hard to say if it is cold or the damage that made the leaves die off. I’m not sure it’ll make it. I cut off the branches that were hanging by threads, dipped them in some rooting hormone and put them in the ground. It’ll be interesting to see if they root.
Again something came and tore the remaining branches off of this plant? Go figure.
I replanted two of the branches that were ripped off in January and they appear to be rooting. It’s too early to tell for sure.
I’m not sure is some critter loves this plant to death or hates it?
Despite being ripped apart several times over the winter by unidentified critters this plant has done well.
It is in part shade and a very dry area. Still it grows and it blooms, and requires no maintenance from me.
I have not seen as much humming birds on this plant as the others in the bee garden but it is off to the side a bit and about 6 feet away from the others so that may be the reason.