Gul-E-Ajaib / Cotton Rose
Hibiscus mutabilis
Also known as Confederate Rose, Changeable Rose
- Habit
- Shrub
- Found in India
- Karnataka, Assam, West Bengal & more
- Flowering
- September-December
How to identify Gul-E-Ajaib
Identify Gul-E-Ajaib by combining habit, leaf characters, flower or fruit details, location, and its family pattern. Do not rely on one feature alone.
- Look for a shrub habit.
- Check the distinctive field mark: Flowers change color through the day.
- Confirm leaf margin: Lobed.
- Confirm flower colour: Red.
- In season, compare flowering and fruiting time: September-December.
- In India, compare location records such as Karnataka, Assam, West Bengal, Kerala and nearby regions.
- Confirm it sits within the Malvaceae family pattern, then compare close relatives before deciding it is Gul-E-Ajaib.
Plant Details
- Scientific name
- Hibiscus mutabilis
- Genus
- Hibiscus
- Family
- Malvaceae
- Habit
- Shrub
- Native to
- China, Tropical Africa
- Distribution
- Pantropic
- Found in India
- Karnataka, Assam, West Bengal, Kerala, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Rajasthan, Tripura
- Flowering & fruiting
- September-December
- Conservation status
- Not Evaluated (NE)
Leaf characters
- Leaf margin
- LobedrecordedThe edge is divided into rounded or pointed sections that don't reach the midrib.“Cotton roses are semi-deciduous with palmately lobed leaves.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
- Arrangement
- Alternate
Characters marked “recorded” are for Gul-E-Ajaib itself; the rest are typical of the Malvaceae family.
Flower & fruit characters
- Flower colour
- Redrecorded“The 'Rubra' variety has red flowers.” — Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
Typical of the family
- Flower symmetry
- Actinomorphic (radially symmetrical)
- Inflorescence
- Solitary
- Fruit
- Capsule
Characters marked “recorded” are for Gul-E-Ajaib itself; the rest are typical of the Malvaceae family — flowering plants only.
Local Names
- Hindi
- गुले अजायब Gul-e-ajaib, स्थलकमल Sthalkamal
- Bengali
- স্থলপদ্ম Sthalpadma, স্থলপদ্ম
- Tamil
- செம்பருத்தி Semburutti
- Telugu
- Patthi Mandaram
- Kannada
- ಚಾರಟೆ Charate, ನೆಲದಾವರೆ Neladavare, ಬೆಟ್ಟದಾವರೆ Bettadaavare
- Malayalam
- Chinappratti, ചേഞ്ച് റോസ്, ചേഞ്ചിങ്ങ് റോസ്
- Marathi
- कापूरभेंडी
- Sanskrit
- पुष्करिणी
About Gul-E-Ajaib
Cotton Rose (Hibiscus mutabilis) is a shrub in the Malvaceae family. In India it has been recorded in Karnataka, Assam, West Bengal and 11 other states. Flowering and fruiting run from September to December.
Malvaceae
Mallow/Hibiscus family
Gul-E-Ajaib belongs to the Malvaceae family.
The illustration represents the family — not necessarily this exact species.
Explore the Malvaceae familySnap it. Know it.
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Common plant problems
If you are starting from symptoms instead of a diagnosis, use the plant disease symptom checker to narrow the cause before treating.
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