Food Plants International - Plant Fact Sheets Mirabilis jalapa - Four O'Clock Plant
Edible Portion: Leaves, Seeds - Spice, Flowers - Colouring, Vegetable, Root - Tea
A bushy herb. It can grow as an annual plant but it can keep growing from year to year from the thick tuberous root. It grows to 60-200 cm high and spreads to 60 cm wide. The stem is short, thick and branching. The leaves occur opposite one another. They are green and oval or sword shaped. They taper to the tip. They are 6-9 cm long by 1-4 cm wide. The lower leaves have leaf stalks while the upper leaves do not. The flowers are like tubes and expand towards the top forming a funnel shape. They are 6 cm long by 3 cm wide. They are red, white, yellow or purple. They have a scent. The flowers open in the afternoon. The flowers occur in clusters at the ends of branches. The fruit are almost round, black nuts.