# Need help identifiying plant-Chinese Lantern?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifiying-plant-chinese-lantern/314378>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [July 27, 2005, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifiying-plant-chinese-lantern/314378 "2005-07-27T08:22:04Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Thin\_Lizzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9a140/32.png) [@Thin\_Lizzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thin_Lizzy)\
**Post date:** [July 27, 2005, 8:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifiying-plant-chinese-lantern/314378/1 "2005-07-27T08:22:04Z")

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I got a plant I have been trying to identify. I checked around on Google, the closet match I can find is a chinese lantern (it has lantern looking things and it looks cool when it dies and dries out) execept this plant is about 7 feet tall and has big red flowers. is this in fact a Chinese Lantern or something else?

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**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\
**Post date:** [July 27, 2005, 8:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifiying-plant-chinese-lantern/314378/2 "2005-07-27T08:51:02Z")

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You’re not giving us much to go one are you? Location? Leaf shape? Are the leaves smooth, hairy etc? Size and shape of flower? Do the flowers appear singly, in groups etc? Herbaceous or woody?

Could it some sort of mallow? There are plenty of them with red flowers in that size range and they produce a fruit that somewhat resembles the chinese lanterns, athough usually more rigid and ‘woody’.

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**Author:** ![Thin\_Lizzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9a140/32.png) [@Thin\_Lizzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thin_Lizzy)\
**Post date:** [July 27, 2005, 9:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifiying-plant-chinese-lantern/314378/3 "2005-07-27T09:20:11Z")

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> [@Blake](#):
>
> You’re not giving us much to go one are you? Location? Leaf shape? Are the leaves smooth, hairy etc? Size and shape of flower? Do the flowers appear singly, in groups etc? Herbaceous or woody?
> 
> Could it some sort of mallow? There are plenty of them with red flowers in that size range and they produce a fruit that somewhat resembles the chinese lanterns, athough usually more rigid and ‘woody’.

leaves look somewhat like cannabis. 7 blades. the flowers are single. the plant completely dies and dries out yet a new one comes back in the spring.

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**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\
**Post date:** [July 27, 2005, 9:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifiying-plant-chinese-lantern/314378/4 "2005-07-27T09:33:58Z")

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Sounding more and more like a mallow of some sort. That palmate leaf is very common in the family.

Where is it growing, (geographically)? And what is the soil like? Is the plant wild or in someone’s garden? Is there some reason you are being so coy about providing information? Is this some sort of game to see who can identify a plant with the least information? 😃 Can you describe the flowers beyond “single, red”?

I’m thinking swamp hibiscus ( [http://www.rarebirdnursery.com/2003-8-16%20012.jpg](http://www.rarebirdnursery.com/2003-8-16%20012.jpg) ) if the ground is moderately damp and you are somewhere in the south. It’s got the right leaves and fruit and is deciduous.

But if I have managed to ID the plant with the scant information provided even I will be impresed with me