How to Cultivate Hibiscus Sabdariffa

Hibiscus sabdariffa or known as Roselle comes from West Africa. Roselle flowers are generally often used as a drink or syrup. The sour taste that comes from these flower petals creates a fresh taste so it is very suitable as a drink/syrup. It has many benefits as well.

Roselle trees grow from seeds with a height that can reach 3-5 meters and produce flowers almost all year round. Roselle flowers are bright red, the petals are dark red and thick. The part of Roselle flowers that can be eaten is the flower petals which have a sour taste.

These flower petals can be used as tea. Roselle is a type of plant that is easy to grow. How to plant it by using dry seeds and then sowing them. This herbal plant was able to work as an antiseptic, and astringent agent.

In past, hibiscus sabdariffa grew in Florida and was used as a living fence in summer. Currently there are more than 100 varieties of roselle spread throughout the world.

The two most famous varieties are H. Sabdariffa and H. Altissima.

The difference between them is that the sabdariffa type has edible petals, is red/pale yellow in color, and contains less fiber, while the altissima flower petals are not edible.

Steps to Cultivate Hibiscus Sabdariffa

This hibiscus plant is classified as an easy plant to cultivate. This plant is able to adapt well to various soil and any climatic conditions.

However, some say that this plant is better grow in tropical or sub-tropical areas with sandy soil conditions and contains humus.

For the cultivation process, this roselle plants are bred through generative methods. This method utilizes seeds that are sown first to get new plants.

1. Preparation and Sowing of Roselle Seeds

Not all roselle plants produce quality seeds, therefore it is necessary to choose healthy plants, free from pests and diseases, and thrive. Roselle seeds that have been obtained from the roselle plant, then dried for about 4 days.

After the seeds are dried, the next step is the seeds can be directly sown on the prepared seedling media. The soil used for this seedling medium must be loose soil so that seed growth can be faster.

If the seedling has germinated with a size of about 7 cm, and it has reached two weeks of age, then the seeds are transferred to polybags that have been filled with planting media. Wait until the roselle plant reaches a size of 20 cm, then the roselle plant can be transferred to a wider soil medium.

Before the process of planting or transferring seedlings to a wider area, it is necessary to do what is called land preparation and processing. This process first begins by clearing the land of the presence of nuisance plants such as bushes.

These nuisance plants cannot be left alone because they will trigger the roselle plants that will be planted later to be attacked by pests and diseases.

The next preparation process is to dig the soil to a depth of about 30 cm.

After that, give manure with a dose that is adjusted to the area of ​​​​the land. This fertilizer application is carried out as an early fertilization effort to make the soil richer in organic matter.

2. Planting Roselle Plants

Roselle plant is a type of annual plant that has one productive period of fruiting. Because of this, it takes the right time in the planting process and based on the season. The recommended time for planting this roselle is at the beginning of the rainy season around mid-August to late October.

For how to plant it, it is done in a parallel way or by crossing 1 x 1 meter.

The transfer of plants from polybags to larger soil media is carried out carefully. In each planting hole, it is enough to fill it with one plant and a maximum of 2 seedlings.

However, if the planting is done without the first seedling process, then one planting hole is filled with two roselle seeds at once.

3. Hibiscus Sabdariffa/Roselle Care

Water

This plant can be watered once a day, in the morning or evening. Do not water too much because it can cause water soggy. This is not good for roselle plants and will make plant rot.

In addition, the intensity of sunlight from roselle plants must also be considered. This plant also needs sufficient sunlight to help it in photosynthesis. Thus, later the plant can grow healthier and produce maximum fruit.

Fertilizer

Basically, the process of applying fertilizer to roselle cultivation is divided into two stages,

1st fertilization, fertilizer application is carried out before planting with compost or manure.

2nd fertilization is given when the roselle plants have reached the age of 3 weeks with urea fertilizer of about 30 to 40 grams per plant. This fertilization is continued again when the roselle plant is 7 or 8 weeks old with the same urea fertilizer.

Pests

Pests that are often found in roselle are aphids. To deal with this pest problem, you can spray anti-fleas or pesticides.

And sometimes problem that usually happen to hibiscus is the leaves that turning yellow, how to fix them and get to know the symptom of it by reading this.

Harvesting Roselle

To harvest roselle plants, the characteristics of the plants are ready to be harvested. can be seen in the wrapper of roselle seeds which have a green color.

In other words, when the roselle plant is 60 days old, the anthocyanin and citric acid content is at its maximum point and will decrease when the roselle seeds begin to fully ripen.

Thus, the harvesting process is recommended when the age of the roselle flower has reached 60 days. Or it can be marked when the flower blooms reach 15 to 20 days.

The most appropriate and recommended time to harvest roselle is in the morning. The reason is that the water of the roselle plant in the morning is still very high, the condition of the flower petals is still quite fresh.

Cutting flowers on roselle plants should use a cutting tool rather than by picking up directly by hand. In addition, with the help of cutting tools will also avoid damage to the flowers.

So that’s the explanation about Hibiscus sabdariffa as known as Roselle. This plant is so easy to cultivate, even if you want to try cultivation in your yard, you can do it by following the techniques above.