Hibiscus grewiifolius (PROSEA)

Plant Resources of South-East Asia Introduction

List of species

Hibiscus grewiifolius Hassk.

Family: Malvaceae

Vernacular names

• Indonesia: taluki, waru geni (Javanese), ki oray (Sundanese)
• Thailand: ngaa chaang (Ranong), chong phian (Surat Thani).

Distribution

Southern Burma (Myanmar), peninsular Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, southern China (Hainan) and Indonesia (Java, Sumbawa).

Uses

The bast fibre seems to be used in Indonesia for making cordage similar to that of Talipariti tiliaceum (L.) Fryxell (synonym: Hibiscus tiliaceus L.) and other Talipariti species. The wood is not very durable and too small in size to be of major use. The attractive flowers give H. grewiifolius ornamental value.

Observations

A small tree, 10-20 m tall; trunk 25-35 cm in diameter. Twigs stellate-pubescent. Leaves simple, alternate; stipules ovate to lanceolate, 4-15 mm × 2-4 mm long; petiole 1-1.5(-4) cm long, stellate pubescent; blade ovate to oblong or nearly lanceolate, 7-27 cm × 3-8.5 cm, base obtuse, rounded or shallowly cordate and somewhat unequal, apex gradually acuminate, penninerved, 3-5-nerved at base, minutely stellate-hairy to glabrous. Flowers large, axillary, solitary; pedicel 7-15 mm long; epicalyx segments 6-10, linear to lanceolate, acute, 5-15 mm × 2-4 mm; calyx campanulate, 1.5-3 cm tall, strongly accrescent; corolla yellow with dark purple centre, consisting of 5 obovate petals 6-8.5 cm long; staminal column about 2 cm long; ovary conical, about 3.5 mm long, 10-celled. Fruit a globose, acuminate capsule, up to 23 mm × 17 mm. Seed reniform, 3.5-4 mm in diameter, with long, woolly, red-brown hairs. H. grewiifolius occurs in secondary or rarely in primary forest at altitudes up to 1000 m. In Java it flowers from February to June. H. grewiifolius is sometimes written as H. grewiaefolius .

Selected sources

6, 58, 71, 189.

Authors

M. Brink, P.C.M. Jansen & C.H. Bosch