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Turk's Cap

Malvaviscus arboreus

Other common name(s):

Wax Mallow, Bleeding Hearts, Mexican Apple, Manzanita

Family:

Malvaceae (Mallow Family)

Plant Ecoregion Distribution Map

East Central Texas Plains, Edwards Plateau, Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes, Texas Blackland Prairies, Western Gulf Coastal Plain
Bastrop Lost Pines, Floodplains and Low Terraces2, San Antonio Prairie, Southern Post Oak Savanna
Balcones Canyonlands
Coastal Sand Plain, Floodplains and Low Terraces4, Laguna Madre Barrier Island and Coastal Marshes, Lower Rio Grande Alluvial Floodplain, Lower Rio Grande Valley, Mid-Coast Barrier Islands and Coastal Marshes, Northern Humid Gulf Coastal Prairies, Southern Subhumid Gulf Coastal Prairies, Texas-Louisiana Coastal Marshes
Floodplains and Low Terraces1, Northern Blackland Prairie, Southern Blackland Prairie
Flatwoods, Floodplains and Low Terraces3, Pleistocene Fluvial Terraces, Red River Bottomlands, Southern Tertiary Uplands

Plant Characteristics

Growth Form

Shrub

Height

2
to
6
ft.

Spread

3
to
5
ft.

Leaf Retention

Deciduous

Lifespan

Perennial

Habitat and Care Requirements

Soil Type(s)

Sand, Clay, Limestone, Well Drained, Moist, Dry

Light Requirement

Sun, Shade

Water Requirement

Low, Medium

Native Habitat

Grassland, Woodland

Bloom and Attraction

Bloom Color

Red

Bloom Season

Summer, Fall

Seasonal Interest

Fruit, Nectar, Pollen

Wildlife Benefit

Butterflies, Birds, Small Mammals, Hummingbirds, Bees

Maintenance

Drought tolerant and grows in a variety of dry to moist soils. Especially useful in shady situations. Spreads easily, remove or transplant young seedlings. Propagation: Seed.

Comments

Blooms June-November. Spreading shrub, forming expanding colonies, but easy to contain. Bright-red, pendant, hibiscus-like flowers never fully open, their petals overlapping to form a loose tube with the stamen protruding – said to resemble a Turkish turban. Fruit for wildlife; attracts birds, hummingbirds and butterflies. Nectar attracts: Cloudless Giant Sulphur.

References

1) Griffith, Bryce, Omernick & Rodgers (2007). Ecoregions of Texas. 2) Miller, George O., Landscaping with Native Plants of Texas 2nd Ed., 2013, pg 48, 53. 3) Wasowski and Wasowski, Native Texas Plants Landscaping Region by Region, 1991, pg. 251. 4) https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=MAARD. 5) http://bonap.net/TDC/Image/Map?taxonType=Species&taxonId=28151&locationType=County&mapType=Normal. 6) https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=21843#null, 7) Native and Adapted Landscape Plants, City of Austin and Texas A&M, 2014.

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