Roselle
Hibiscus sabdariffa
Family: Malvaceae
What it is like
Hibiscus sabdariffa is a ANNUAL/PERENNIAL growing to 3 m (9ft) by 2 m (6ft). See above for USDA hardiness. It is hardy to UK zone 10 and is frost tender. It is in flower from August to October, and the seeds ripen from October to November. The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is pollinated by Insects. Suitable for: light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and prefers well-drained soil. Suitable pH: mildly acid, neutral and basic (mildly alkaline) soils. It cannot grow in the shade. It prefers moist soil.
Height (m): 3
Where it is found
Disturbed ground.
Tropics - probably tropical central or western Africa.
Conservation Status: This taxon has not yet been assessed
Countries/locations it is found in
Africa, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Asia, Australia, Bangladesh, Benin, Brazil, Burkina Faso, Burma, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central Africa, Central African Republic, Central America, Chad, China, Congo DR, Congo R, Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Dominica, East Africa, Egypt, Equatorial-Guinea, Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guiana, Guinea, Guinée, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Hawaii, India, Indochina, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Kenya, Laos, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, North Africa, North America, Northeastern India, Pacific, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, SE Asia, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, South Africa, Southern Africa, South America, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Tanzania,
How it is used
Food
Rating: 3
The fresh calyx (the outer whorl of the flower) is eaten raw in salads, is cooked and used as a flavouring in cakes etc and is also used in making jellies, soups, sauces, pickles, puddings etc. The calyx is rich in citric acid and pectin and so is useful for making jams, jellies etc. It is also used to add a red colour and to flavour to herb teas, and can be roasted and used as a coffee substitute. A refreshing and very popular beverage can be made by boiling the calyx, sweetening it with sugar and adding ginger. Tender young leaves and stems - raw or cooked. Used in salads, as a potherb and as a seasoning in curries, they have an acid, rhubarb-like flavour. Seed - roasted and ground into a powder then used in oily soups and sauces. The roasted seeds have been used as a coffee substitute that is said to have aphrodisiac properties. Root - it is edible but very fibrousy. Mucilaginous, without very much flavour. The seed yields 20% oil. (This is probably edible).
Oil: Oil
Root: includes bulbs, corms, tubers, rhizomes etc.
Seed: includes nuts, cereals, peas and beans.
Coffee: the various substitutes that can be used instead of coffee.
Condiment: the various plants that are used as flavourings, either as herbs, spices or condiments.
Drink: not including plant saps, tea or coffee substitutes.
Pectin: a substance that is used to thicken jams etc and as a culture medium in laboratories.
Tea: the various herb teas that can be used in place of tea, plus the genuine article.
Medicine
Rating: 3
Roselle is an aromatic, astringent, cooling herb that is much used in the Tropics. It is said to have diuretic effects, to help lower fevers and is antiscorbutic. The leaves are antiscorbutic, emollient, diuretic, refrigerant, and sedative. The leaves are very mucilaginous and are used as an emollient and as a soothing cough remedy. They are used externally as a poultice on abscesses. The fruits are antiscorbutic. The flowers contain gossypetin, anthocyanin, and the glycoside hibiscin. These may have diuretic and choleretic effects, decreasing the viscosity of the blood, reducing blood pressure and stimulating intestinal peristalsis. The leaves and flowers are used internally as a tonic tea for digestive and kidney functions. Experimentally, an infusion decreases the viscosity of the blood, reduces blood pressure and stimulates intestinal peristalsis. The ripe calyces are diuretic and antiscorbutic. The succulent calyx, boiled in water, is used as a drink in the treatment of bilious attacks. The seeds are diuretic, laxative and tonic. They are used in the treatment of debility. The bitter root is aperitif and tonic. The plant is also reported to be antiseptic, aphrodisiac, astringent, cholagogue, demulcent, digestive, purgative and resolvent. It is used as a folk remedy in the treatment of abscesses, bilious conditions, cancer, cough, debility, dyspepsia, dysuria, fever, hangover, heart ailments, hypertension, neurosis, scurvy, and strangury. One report says that the plant has been shown to be of value in the treatment of arteriosclerosis and as an intestinal antiseptic, though it does not say which part of the plant is used. Simulated ingestion of the plant extract decreased the rate of absorption of alcohol, lessening the intensity of alcohol effects in chickens.
Antibilious: Corrects the secretions of bile.
Antiscorbutic: A plant rich in vitamin C that is used to counteract scurvy.
Antiseptic: Preventing sepsis, decay or putrefaction, it destroys or arrests the growth of micro-organisms.
Aphrodisiac: Increases the sexual appetite.
Appetizer: Improves the appetite
Aromatic: Having an agreeable odour and stimulant qualities.
Astringent: Produces contraction in living tissue, reducing the flow of secretions and discharges of blood, mucus, diarrhoea etc.
Cholagogue: Increases the flow of bile and its discharge from the body.
Demulcent: Soothes, lubricates and softens irritated tissues, especially the mucous membranes.
Digestive: Aids digestion.
Diuretic: Acts on the kidneys, promoting the flow of urine.
Emollient: Softens the skin, causing warmth and moisture.
Febrifuge: Reduces fevers.
Hypotensive: Reduces blood pressure, it is used in the treatment of high blood pressure
Poultice: A moist, usually warm or hot, mass of plant material applied to the skin in the treatment of burns etc.
Purgative: A drastic laxative causing a cleansing or watery evacuation of the bowels, usually with a griping pain.
Refrigerant: Cools the body.
Resolvent: Breaks down tumors. This might be placed under antitumor.
Sedative: Gently calms, reducing nervousness, distress and irritation.
Stomachic: Aids and improves the action of the stomach.
Tonic: Improves general health. Slower acting than a stimulant, it brings steady improvement.
Other
Rating: 2
A strong fibre obtained from the stem (called rosella hemp) is used for various household purposes including making sackcloth, twine and cord. A yellow dye is obtained from the petals. It is used in medicines etc. The seed yields 20% oil.
Dye: Plants that provide dyes.
Fibre: Used for making cloth, rope, paper etc.
Oil: Vegetable oils have many uses, as lubricants, lighting, soap and paint making, waterproofing etc. This does not include the edible oils unless they are also mentioned as having other uses.
Pectin: A substance that is used to thicken jams etc and as a culture medium in laboratories.
String: Plants that can be used for string or can be easily made into a string. See also Fibre. Plants for ropes may be included.
Food Forest: Plants for Edible Forest Gardens and Food Forests.
How it is grown
Prefers a well-drained humus rich fertile soil in full sun. Roselle requires a permeable soil, a friable sandy loam with humus being preferable; however, it will adapt to a variety of soils. It is not shade tolerant and must be kept weed-free. It will tolerate floods, heavy winds or stagnant water. Roselle is reported to tolerate an annual precipitation of 64 to 429cm, an annual temperature in the range of 12.5 to 27.5°C and a pH of 4.5 to 8.0. This species is not hardy in Britain, but it can be grown as a half-hardy annual, flowering in its first year from seed. Plants are sensitive to the length of daylight and do not flower if there are more than 13 hours of light in the day. Roselle is widely cultivated in the Tropical and Sub-tropical zones for its fibre and edible calyx, there are some named varieties. Roselle is best suited to tropical climates with a well-distributed rainfall of 1500 - 2000 mm yearly, from sea-level to about 600 m altitude. It tolerates a warmer and more humid climate than kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus), but is more susceptible to damage from frost and fog. Plants exhibit marked photoperiodism, not flowering at shortening days of 13.5 hours, but flowering at 11 hours. In the United States plants do not flower until short days of late fall or early winter. Since flowering is not necessary for fibre production, long light days for 3 - 4 months is the critical factor. There are two main forms of the plant: var. sabdariffa has red or pale yellow inflated edible calyces but a poor quality fibre; var. altissima is grown for its fibre but has inedible calyces. Plants have a deep penetrating taproot.
Propagating it: Seed - sow early spring in a warm greenhouse. Germination is usually fairly rapid. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle. If growing them as annuals, plant them out into their permanent positions in early summer and protect them with a frame or cloche until they are growing away well. If hoping to grow them as perennials, then it is better to grow them on in the greenhouse for their first year and to plant them out in early summer of the following year. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a frame. Overwinter them in a warm greenhouse and plant out after the last expected frosts.
Best place to grow: Cultivated Beds;
Habit: Annual/Perennial
Hardiness: 9-12
Growth:
Soil: Light (sandy), medium, heavy (clay)
Shade: No shade
Moisture: Moist
Things to keep in mind
Its other names
Local names
Roselle, Jamaican Tea, Maple-Leaf Hibiscus, Florida Cranberry, October Hibiscus, Red Sorrell, Abema, Amukan, Carcade, Cay bup giam, Chidede, Chinbaung ywet, Chukar, Chukiar, Ekiganga, Emalakany, Emelakwang, Fol-lere, Florida cranberry, Gamet walanda, Gisma, Gurguzu, Indian sorrel, Kahcieb priew, Kalabi, Karcade, Karkady, Ka-santhor, Kata bahaji petua, Krachiap-daeng, Krachiap, Kuluba, Lakher-anthur, Lal-ambadi, Lal-ambari, Lal-mista, Lokeke, Malakwang, Mei gui qie, Mesta tenga, Mphesya, Ngayi-ngayi, Ojo, Oseilla rouge Patwa, Polechi, Pulichchai, Pulincha kira, Pundibija, Quimbombo chino, Rata bilincha, Red Sorrel, Roozera, Rosela, Sakpa, Sato, Sawa-sawa, Shan qie zi, Shilot sougree, Slok chu, Sorel, Sour-sour, Sure, Tenga more, Thakhlao maikhri, acedera de guinea, ambashthaki, amba??haki (root), ambodi, bissap, carcade, carurú-de-guiné, florida cranberry, gongura, hamaíga, hibisci flos, hibisci sabdariffae flos, hibiscus, indian sorrel, indian-sorrel, jamaica, jamaica sorrel, jamaica, flor, jamaica-sorrel, jamaican sorrel, karkade, karkadè, karkadé, kaunria, kempu pundrike pullichekir, ketmie, khataa, kolada, lalambari, malventee, masts pal, mesta, oseille de guinee, oseille de guinée, pariccakam, patna, patsan, pudisoppu, pulicheera, pulichikire, pundikura, quiabo-azedo, quiabo-de-angola, quiabo-roxo, quiabo-róseo, red sorrel, red-sorrel, rosa de jamaica, rosela, rosella, roselle, rosellhibiskus, roseneibisch, sabdariffa-eibisch, serení, sorrel, sour sour, tak bhend, thé rose d’abyssinie., vinagreira.