While out exploring a nearby park today I was captivated by these bright blossoms. Closer inspection of them had me perplexed, they looked like hibiscus flowers but they were attached to a large tree.

A quick internet search cleared up my confusion, it was a Sea Hibiscus (Hibiscus tiliaceus), the only member of the hibiscus family that reaches tree status. This one, was close to thirty feet high and equally wide (and I wish I had taken a photo of it).

Introduced from the Old World, this year-round bloomer has naturalized in Florida. The flowers open yellow with a red center but change to orange and then red before dropping off the limb. I wonder if I could plant one in my yard…