Pink Pentapetes
Common Name: Pink Pentapetes[1]
Scientific Name: Pentapetes phoenicea
Description: Tender, ornamental, annual flower; pink, mallow-like blossoms open at noon and close at dawn; distinctive, olive green foliage with serrated edges
Size: Grows 3 to 5 feet; upright habit
Cultural Information: Prefers full sun to light shade and well-drained garden loam
Historical Notes: This unusual plant of the Old World Tropics, rarely cultivated in America, is a member of the chocolate family with brownish-green stems and mallow-like blossoms. It makes a handsome accent plant in the garden. This rare but naturally occurring pink form was selected from plantings of the species. Thomas Jefferson grew the Scarlet Pentapetes variety.
Footnotes
- ↑ This article is based on a Center for Historic Plants Information Sheet.
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