Rosemallow is in a
large family that includes cotton, okra, and rose of Sharon.The two native species expected in northeast Alabama are both obligate
wetland species and can even grow in places that are submerged for much of the
year. These are the crimsoneyed
rosemallow, Hibiscus moscheutos, and halberdleaf
rosemallow, H. laevis, shown here, which can
easily be distinguished by differences in leaf shapes.There has been some juggling of species
between geneses considering that rose of Sharon, H. syriacus, is also known as shrub althaea, and Althaea is the
generic name of marshmallows, which once provided a gum used to produce a the
original confection that is now modified but called by the same homophonic name.Okra, Abelmoschusesculentus,
an integral part of gumbo, which is a common name for okra, also used to be in the genus Hibiscus.Cotton on the other hand is in the genus Gossypium.Another familiar species in the same family
is hollyhock, Alcea rosea.
Rosemallow is in a
large family that includes cotton, okra, and rose of Sharon. The two native species expected in northeast 