Abutilon purpurascens

At a glance

Lifecycle: Perennial (hardy)
Exposure: Full sun
Frost limit: −6.7 °C

Cultivation

Requires full sun or part day shade and a fertile well-drained soil. Plants are not very hardy in Britain, they tolerate light frosts and so can be grown outdoors in the mildest areas of the country but are best if given a minimum temperature of 10°c over the winter. Plants in this genus are notably resistant to honey fungus.

Propagation

Seed - sow March in a warm greenhouse. The seed germinates in 3 - 4 weeks at 15°c. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for at least their first winter. Plant them out in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts, and consider giving them some protection from the cold for their first winter outdoors. Cuttings of young shoots in spring. Very easy, they root quickly. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July in a frame. Cuttings of mature wood, November in a cold frame.

Edible uses

Flowers - cooked. Used as a vegetable.

Habitat

Not known

Native range

S. America - Brazil.