The Sea Hibiscus plant grows along the Indian Ocean, from East and South Africa to Southeast Asia, as well as in northern and eastern Australia. Waru has long been known as a shade tree on roadsides, riverbanks, and seashores. The young leaves can be consumed as a vegetable and used to wrap tempeh, and are also used in commercial products to fertilize hair (shampoo).

This tropical plant is commonly found on the coastline at altitudes up to 800 m above sea level (m.a.s.l.). It grows well with an annual rainfall of 900–2,500 mm/year, and an average temperature of 24–41  

∘

 C. It prefers full sunlight intensity, fertile soil with a pH of 5–8.5, and high humidity.

• Stem (Batang) Reaches a height of 15 m, with a stem diameter of 40–50 cm, branched, and brown in color.

• Leaves (Daun) Simple (single), stalked (petiolate), heart-shaped (jantung), non-lobed (tidak berlekuk), less than 19 cm in diameter, palmate venation (menjari), and hairy on the underside.

• Flower (Bunga) Solitary flower, with 8–11 lobes, yellow color. Calyx length is 2.5 cm. The petals are fan-shaped, 5–7 cm long, yellow with a spot at the base. The anthers (kepala sari) are yellow.

• Fruit (Buah) The ovary has 5 chambers, each chamber divided by a false septum, ovoid shaped with a short beak and 5 valves, containing many seeds.

• Propagation is done by seeds and stem cuttings.

• Stem cuttings are prepared by selecting young twigs, cutting them to a length of 10–15 cm below a bud eye, and then planting them in a polybag.

Treats fever, cough, diarrhea, tonsillitis, trachoma, eye inflammation, boils, common cold/mild flu (masuk angin), helps hair growth, and treats delayed menstruation (terlambat haid).

Flavonoids, tannins, vanillin, syriacusin A, hibiscolactone, fumaric acid, azelaic acid, succinic acid, rutin, stigmasterol, friedelin, pachysandiol, glutinol, lupeol, and β-sitosterol.