Hi Jim,

Yes, I ordered my first one this year. Love the color of it. Mine is named "Plum Crazy". Below is a picture of it's blooms. Very nice plants!

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Easy

Hi Easy!

That is a great picture! I brought back several of these plants, they seem to be a neat plant to grow in this area. What kind of sun exposure and water use does your "Plum Crazy" take?

Thanks!

It's on the same watering system (drip irrigation) as my Roses are, so 4 to 5 gallons of water every Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday. Mine is in full sun till about 2:00 PM, then in the shade the rest of the day.

Easy

How long do the blooms last?

I JUSTlove how you folks keep going even in this heat and find things to discuss it keeps my spirts up..since all i get to do is water nowadays ;-)

I brought back a "Plum Crazy" from TN. After seeing the picture, am excited about it. My Moy Grande flowers last one day, I should post a picture. Huge red flowers. I am going to discuss Hardy Hibiscus at the Outgardening meeting on Saturday. Will have one or two for a raffle!

This hibis

My blooms only last a day too, but there is almost always blooms replacing other blooms. The size of the blooms is what makes them so awesome I think. Mine seems to have blooms in the 7", maybe 8" range.

Easy

Hey Guys...just purchased this stunning Hardy Hibiscus off of ebay today...check it out. Made me drool the minute I saw it ;)

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Easy

Easy, that is awesome. What variety is it?

This one is called "Turn of the Century".

easy

Hibiscus observations:
Needs heat. And then more heat. Did I mention heat?
Blooms last only a day (ok, in spring, 1 1/2 days sometimes; yesterday, about 2 minutes at 111 degrees/full sun)
Hates standing in water (wet feet), ABSOLUTELY needs good drainage.
Likes being moist more often than not; several dry days are fine in "decent" weather (remember spring?)
Drops many leaves in winter, so prune to a pretty branch shape that's also functional (for support and growing tips with flowers)
Many/most will get BIG, so do prune for support and structure.
Can be trained single trunk/"tree" style.
Stop feeding in September to harden (loves manure sidedressing.)

What I like best about Hardy Hibiscus is that they propagate so easily from seeds (once someone else who knows where the seeds are harvests them).

I don't have named varieties though, except for Lemon Slice. Mine are all only 5 inches tall at this point but I hope they grow up to be half as gorgeous as some of these! sam

Can they be in a pot outside, mine seems to be curling up, and it was so pretty?

Hardy hibiscus is deciduous, so it dies back in cold weather but returns with warm weather.

Actually if I could I would replace the word deciduous with dormant. ;-)

I'VE ONLY HAD LUCK WITH PLANTING HIBISCUS THIS PAST YEAR. I PLANTED TWO TOGETHER (ONE YELLOW ONE ORANGE) AND THEY SEEM TO LOVE EACH OTHER!?? I PLANTED THEM JAN. 05 AND COVERED THEM RELIGIOUSLY THROUGHOUT THE COLD WINTER NIGHTS. THEY ARE ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF MY HOUSE AND HAVE BARELY LOST A LEAF SINCE LAST SUMMER. THE YELLOW ONE IS ALREADY BLOOMING. I ALSO DISCOVERED WHAT TO DO WHEN THE LEAVES START TO YELLOW. I THOUGHT IT WAS BECAUSE OF TOO MUCH WATER LIKE MOST PLANTS RESPOND BUT MY FAVORITE GARDENER TOLD ME TO FEED IT 'PALM FOOD'. HONEST! READ THE BAG. I ALSO FEED MY BIRD OF PARADISE AND BOGANVILLIA WITH IT. HOPE THIS HELPS.
LUVNBLOOMS