A Taxonomic Study of the Indigenous Hawaiian Species 
of the Genus Hibiscus (Malvaceae) 
Sister MARGARET JAMES ROE 1 
The GENUS Hibiscus is a member of the Malva- 
ceae, a family of 80 or more genera distributed 
throughout the world except in frigid regions. 
Many abound in the tropics and subtropics, 
where they are important as ornamental and 
commercial plants. 
Since Hibiscus hybridization was first suc- 
cessfully accomplished in Hawaii in 1872 by 
Governor Archibald Cleghorn of Oahu, a grow- 
ing interest in the genus has prevailed not only 
in Hawaii, where the legislature has designated 
one of the species as the official flower, but also 
throughout global tropical and subtropical re- 
gions. Horticulturists striving to secure desir- 
able varieties have introduced to Hawaii many 
new species, subspecies, and forms (Naka- 
sone, 1953). The popularity of the genus has 
stimulated numerous amateur hybridizers to 
produce thousands of complex hybrids whose 
parentage is now impossible to trace. The at- 
tractiveness of these exquisite cultivars has en- 
couraged and nourished the organization of 
several societies to foster such hybridization. 
Little attention, however, has been given to 
the indigenous members of the genus, several 
of which have been useful in the production of 
these hybrids. Heretofore, no single compre- 
hensive work has been done on the native mem- 
bers of the genus. Individual descriptions have 
appeared in print as far back in 1819. Hille- 
brand (1888) and Rock (1913) both included 
1 Former address : Maryknoll Sisters, Honolulu, Ha- 
waii; present address: Apartado postal 1121, Guate- 
mala City, Guatemala, C. A. 
Manuscript received October 1, 1959. 
several Hibiscus species in their Floras. It is the 
purpose of this work to record as complete as 
possible an investigation of the native species, 
varieties, and forms, resolving the groups of the 
indigenous Hibiscus populations into taxonom - 
ically recognizable groups. 
This study could neither have been under- 
taken nor accomplished without the help of 
friends who gave time, knowledge, and en- 
couragement. I am primarily indebted to Dr. 
Harold St. John, former Professor of Botany at 
the University of Hawaii, for introducing me 
to the problem. I am indebted to Mr. Irwin 
Lane for supervising the taxonomic and nomen- 
clatural conclusions. Dr. Joseph F. Rock also 
contributed many hours in discussing the prob- 
lem and collecting specimens. I am indebted 
to Miss Marie Neal, Dr. Otto Degener, Mr. and 
Mrs. Colin Potter, and Messers. Paul Weissich, 
Donald Anderson, Albert Duvel, and Henry 
Wiebke for their contributions to this work. 
Dr. Reed C. Rollins and Dr. Robert C. Foster 
of the Gray Herbarium checked and reported on 
material there. Dr. Richard S. Cowan investi- 
gated the Hibiscus specimens at the Smithsonian 
Institution (U. S. National Museum) and sent 
lengthy descriptions and explanations. On the 
island of Kauai, Mr. George Cliff acted as guide 
during my stay at Waimea Canyon. Mrs. Hector 
Moir of Poipu, Mr. John Santos of Eleele, Mr. 
Stephen Au of Lihue, Mr. Ronald Harker of 
Hale Manu, Mr. Adam Jacinto of Kalaheo, and 
Mr. Solomon Malina of Kipu were instrumental 
in helping me with collections on Kauai. 
The illustrations were made by Sister Chris- 
3 
