In horticultural terms, Rose of Sharon is a flowering shrub in the plant family Malvaceae, native to much of Asia. It is vase-shaped, reaching three feet in height. It is also very strong. If cut and put in a vase, it will survive much longer than almost any other plant. (This is definitely a plant that knows how to thrive in New York City.) It blooms from June all the way through to October, and is one of the only plants in the garden that can be still be found by Halloween. In fact, the plant grows so well in Central Park that it has to be cut back every year to produce flowers, which will only appear on new wood.

The name Rose of Sharon has been used in everything from a Kate Bush song to the literary classic The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck (Rose of Sharon is the eldest daughter of the Joad family and the sister of the protagonist Tom Joad.) It is a lovely name for a lovely flower that easily lives up to its very exalted literary references.