Chinese ixora (*Ixora chinensis*), also commonly known as mountain ixora or dragon boat flower, goes by various local names such as red hydrangea or sanduan flower. It is an evergreen shrub native to southern China and Malaysia, with the most commonly seen varieties bearing orange-red blossoms. It is recognized as one of the “Three Celebrated Flowers of Okinawa” and serves as the city flower of Uruma, Okinawa. Each flower cluster consists of roughly 20 to 30 tiny tubular flowers that split into 4 or 5 elliptic petals at the top; the corolla tube measures about 2.5 cm long, and the blossoms are mostly brick-red. Gathering in large, dense round globes, these vibrant clusters closely resemble hydrangeas, earning them the nickname “red hydrangea.” It is also famously named “mountain ixora” after the Shandan Mountains in southern China where it grows natively. While the Western ixora (*Ixora coccinea*) similarly produces clusters of 20 to 30 small flowers, its overall shape is more hemispherical, and its petals are noticeably sharper and longer.
