Hibiscus rosa-sinensis Linnaeus var. schizopetalus Dyer ex Masters, Gard. Chron., n.s., 11: 272. 1879.

Shrubs evergreen, erect, to 3 m tall. Branchlets slender, usually pendulous, glabrous. Stipules subulate, ca. 2 mm, usually caducous; petiole 1-2 cm, stellate; leaf blade elliptic or oblong, not lobed, 4-7 × 1.5-4 cm, papery, glabrous, base obtuse or broadly cuneate, margin dentate, apex acute or shortly acuminate. Flowers solitary, axillary on upper branchlets, pendulous. Pedicel slender, 8-14 cm, glabrous or slightly hairy, articulate in middle. Epicalyx lobes 5, lanceolate, 1-2 mm, ciliate, apex obtuse or acute. Calyx tubular, ca. 1.5 cm, sparsely hairy, 5-lobed, usually dehiscent on 1 side. Petals 5, red, ca. 5 cm, deeply pinnatifid, strongly reflexed. Staminal column longer than corolla, 9-10 cm, glabrous, curved upward toward tip; anthers restricted to upper part. Style branches 5, glabrous. Capsule oblong-cylindric, ca. 4 × 1 cm. Fl. year-round.

Though clearly most closely related to Hibiscus rosa-sinensis, there is no reason to doubt that H. schizopetalus is indigenous to East Africa.

Cultivated. Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, Taiwan, S Yunnan [native to E Africa; now widely cultivated as an ornamental].