For pink ball cricket, see Day/night cricket.

Dombeya wallichii is a flowering shrub of the family Malvaceae known by the common names pinkball, pink ball tree, and tropical hydrangea.[2]

Description

The plant can grow 20[3] to 30[2] feet tall and has a spread of up to 25 feet. The alternately arranged leaves are heart-shaped with serrated edges. The hanging flower clusters are pink, showy,[3] and fragrant.[2]

Range and habitat

It is native to eastern Madagascar.[1] Its natural distribution isn't well understood, but wild specimens were collected from two coastal streamside locations on the eastern coast of Madagascar – at Antalaha on the northeastern coast, and at Mandena on the southeastern coast.[4]

It has been introduced by humans to Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Marianas, Mauritius, southwestern Mexico, Réunion, Thailand, and the Windward Islands, where it has naturalized.[1]

Cultivation

Dombeya wallichii is grown widely as a garden plant.

This species can be crossed with Dombeya burgessiae to produce the hybrid Dombeya × cayeuxii.[2]

References

  1. ^ a b c Dombeya wallichii (Lindl.) Benth. ex Baill. Plants of the World Online, Kew Science. Accessed 26 June 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d Carter, K. Tropical Hydrangea: Dombeya wallichi. Center for Landscape and Urban Horticulture. University of California Cooperative Extension, Central Coast & South Region.
  3. ^ a b Gilman, E. F. and D. G. Watson. Dombeya wallichii: Pinkball. Document ENH391. Environmental Horticulture, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Published 1993. Revised 2006.
  4. ^ Skema, C. (2014). Reevaluation of Species Delimitations in Dombeya Section Hilsenbergia (Dombeyaceae). Systematic Botany, 39(2), 541–562. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24546163