The Explanation About Hibiscus Fruit

Everyone must know or at least have heard about Hibiscus once in their life. This flower has many followings. Due to having lots of followings, it is normal when people want to know more about it. There is unique facts about this plant. One of them is about the fruit.

A lot of people think that Hibiscus does not bear the fruit. Is it true? Or is it just a rumor? If you want to know about the real facts, keep reading the whole article until the last word.

The existence of Hibiscus fruits is such a myth. It is confusing for some people. Actually, the statement saying that Hibiscus does not produce fruit is not completely true as it is not like it does not produce fruit, it is just the fruit that it produces is hidden. For those who are wondering where the fruit of Hibiscus is, it is located just below the flower. If you see a capsule or five lobed pods just below the flower, it is what is called Hibiscus fruit. Just like any other fruit, there are seeds within the lob. It means this plant does not have any distinct fruit.

As stated before, the fruits of Hibiscus resemble dry pods. The shape of them looks like a capsule. When maturing, they will split up and drop out as winged seeds that may float away or may shed hooked seeds. Talking about Hibiscus species, the process of reproduction happens when the pollen from the male ones reaches the female flowers and the process of fertilization happens. When the pods get mature, they will crack and the seeds will come out of them and fall to the ground. On the ground, they will germinate to make more plants.

Once again, the statement saying that Hibiscus is known as one of the plants that does not produce fruit is not true. It does bear the fruits but the fruits are hidden. If you are wondering why, here is the explanation for you.

1. Hibiscus flowers have a high pistil and a low anther

A pollination process is important in the process of fertilization in plants. However, the same thing cannot happen to the Hibiscus flower due to the fact that it has a high pistil and a low anther, that explains why the pollen cannot reach the anther or the process of pollination fails to happen. This fact makes the Hibiscus one of the flowers that cannot produce fruit and seed.

2. Hibiscus flowers cannot produce male sex cells

Stamen consists of antennae and filament. For those who have no idea, filaments refer to the hairs that are attached to the anthers with flowers while the antennae is the tool for producing and has pollen. Pollen is known as a male gamete or something that is called a sperm. In general, flowers will need male sex cells to product fruit. As the Hibiscus flower cannot produce the male sex cells, there is no way of it to produce fruit.

3. There is no fertilization

The fertilization process cannot happen to Hibiscus flowers because the male sex cells do not reach the ovary. The reason why the male sex cells do not reach the ovary is because the Hibiscus flowers have no ability to produce the male sex cells.

In fact, there are some people who mistaken Roselle as the fruit of Hibiscus when in fact it is not. Contrary to popular belief, Roselle is just one of the species of Hibiscus. This one is originally from Africa, especially West Africa.

People have mistaken Rosella as Hibiscus fruit because in some places like Australia, it is called Rosella fruit. This variant of hibiscus rich of Vit C that usually produces red edible calyxes. They are sweets, that’s why they goes well in some foods and drinks, including salads, jams, jellies, red sauces, cordials, wine, fruit teas, syrups, and many more. Some stores usually sell them in the form of syrup or liquid, a decorative and flavoring additive for cocktails, white wine or champagne. If you want to make food from this plant, you can roast the seeds and ground them into flour. It is stated that the young leaves can be steamed or stir fried.

If you want to make something simple from Roselle, the best thing might be Rosella jam. Here are tips to follow:

Ingredients:

• 60 Rosella calyxes
• Water
• Sugar
• Rosella pulp
• ½ cup of pectin

Method:

The first thing that you have to do is to separate the calyx flesh from the seed pod. Then, put all the seed pods in a saucepan while the calyx flesh should be put in the big cooking pot. Next, cover each with enough water and boil it. After that, reduce the heat and simmer each for about an hour. There are two things that should be strained: the calyx pulp and the seed pods. Please strain the calyx pulp through a medium strainer and strain the seed pods through a fine strainer. Remember to keep the liquid, which is known as the homemade pectin. After that, add a half cup of the pectin to the calyx pulp and weigh. and add an equal amount of sugar to the pulp and pectin. The next thing to do is to boil the jam mixture and reduce heat to simmer for about an hour or less. But one thing to remember you have to keep stiring it to prevent it from burning. It is important to check if the mixture has reached a setting point, which can be done by pouring a teaspoon onto a cold plate. Keep simmering and check again every five or 10 minutes until the sample is no longer syrupy. Once again, the process is done when the sample that is cooled looks like a jam. If this guide is not clear and a bit confusing, you can go to Youtube and find the video tutorial that usually works better.