Shoe Flowers (Hibiscus) - The Common Center of Attraction of Every Garden
The blooming month is January... Over the years, I have been curiously watching and specifically taking note of the Shoe flowers or rather, The Hibiscus. Its a very common shrub occurring and growing comfortably on this western coast of the Indian peninsula. I have quite a collection in my own garden and in my neighborhood. The climate is nice, crispy and cool in the mornings and evenings lush and breezy. The rest of the day is pretty warm and sunny, specifically in the summer when the weather is highly humid and hot. And it is this favorable climate, that brings these beauties to the bloom in this very season. Have you ever wondered why this flower is called a Shoe Flower???? The reason is that it was traditionally used to polish shoes in Asia, and in some backward villages, It STILL IS! called a shoe flower. That was pretty simple. Structurally, the Shoe Flowers mainly has five petals with a long stalk-like structure in the center. Multi-petal flowers also exist; these are