Four-o-clock

Description:

Ornamental perennial plant, of the family Nyctaginaceae, native to tropical America. Four-o’clock is a quick-growing species up to one metre (three feet) tall, with oval leaves on short leafstalks. The stems are swollen at the joints. The plant is called four-o’clock because its flowers, from white and yellow to shades of pink and red, sometimes streaked and mottled, open in late afternoon (and close by morning). There are 45 species in the Mirabilis genus of herbs.

Habitat:

Wildlife habitat yard.

Notes:

The species epithet jalapa is an old Central and South American generic name. Jalapa is the Spanish word for the dried root of a Mexican vine, Ipomoea purga. The name is given to any plant that has similar roots. The city of Jalapa, Mexico imported and exported the plant and thus the plant took its name.