Common name: Ladies Finger, Okra, Bhindi भिन्डी (Hindi), Belendri (Manipuri), வெண்டைக்காய் Vendaikkaay (Tamil)
Botanical name: Abelmoschus esculentus Family: Malvaceae (mallow family)
A member of the hibiscus family, okra is an annual that gets 3-8' tall
(depending on the cultivar) and bears yellow flowers that give rise to the
familiar okra pods so common in India as a fried vegetable.
Okra's attractive blossoms are ivory or yellow in color, funnel-shaped and
resemble hibiscus flowers. The throat of the flower is maroon. The plant is
a rather coarse
annual with large lobed, slightly spiny leaves and a thick, semiwoody stem
with few branches.
Identification credit: Supriya Saha
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