Scarlet Rosemallow
Hibiscus coccineus
Found in freshwater marshes; swamps; roadsides, fields and disturbed ground. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you
Not native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 65%
- Height
- Up to about 10 feet
- Light
- Sun
- Soil moisture
- Wet
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial
Not yet recorded · Spread · Leaves · Bloom
This plant is missing most of its facts, so Quercus is looking them up in old botany books.
Recorded in 5 Virginia counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Open, herb-covered wetlands with fresh, non-tidal water.
Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground
Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.
Who uses this plant?
33CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
Genus host records with ranges including VA · Hibiscus
- Acharia stimuleaSaddleback Caterpillar Moth
- Amyna strictaEight-Spot Moth
- Anarta trifoliiThe Nutmeg, Clover Cutworm
- Anomis erosaYellow Scallop Moth, Mallow Caterpillar
- Anomis flavaTropical Anomis Moth
- Anticarsia gemmatalisVelvetbean Caterpillar Moth
- Automeris ioIo Moth
- Burnsius communisCommon Checkered-Skipper
- Chloridea virescensTobacco Budworm Moth
- Elasmopalpus lignosellaLesser Cornstalk Borer
Show all 33
- Euclea delphiniiSpiny Oak-Slug Moth
- Eudryas unioPearly Wood-Nymph
- Feltia subterraneaSubterranean Dart, Granulate Cutworm
- Helicoverpa zeaCorn Earworm Moth
- Hypena scabraGreen Cloverworm Bomolocha, Black Snout
- Hyphantria cuneaFall Webworm
- Idia lubricalisGlossy Black Idia
- Megalopyge opercularisSouthern Flannel Moth, Puss Caterpillar
- Orgyia leucostigmaWhite-Marked Tussock Moth
- Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
- Platynota rostranaOmnivorous Platynota
- Spodoptera dolichosSweetpotato Armyworm, Dolichos Armyworm, Large Cotton Armyworm
- Spodoptera eridaniaSouthern Armyworm Moth
- Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
- Spodoptera ornithogalliYellow-Striped Armyworm Moth, Cotton Cutworm
- Strymon melinusGray Hairstreak
- Tarache apricaExposed Bird-Dropping Moth
- Tarache delectaDelightful Bird-Dropping Moth
- Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformisEvergreen Bagworm Moth
- Urodus parvulaBumelia Webworm
- Chionodes hibiscella
- Epiblema numerosana
- Telamoptilia hibiscivora
—BeesSoutheastern regional records
1Specialist beesPollen specialists
Pollen specialists · Hibiscus
- Ptilothrix bombiformis
1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Hibiscus
- Coccothraustes vespertinusEvening Grosbeak
Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening
Plant details
- Family
- Malvaceae
- Flower color
- Red
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Flower color · “Red” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Height · “Up to about 10 feet” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Light · “Sun” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- primary_flower_color · “red” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- Soil · “Wet” · Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Also known as
Muenchhusia coccinea
Conservation status
| Virginia rank | SNR |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G4? |
| VA status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Native alternatives
Find natives for your gardenSources
- Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora
- USDA PLANTS
- NatureServe Explorer
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications