i got a seed off my blue river. im going to plant it in jan or feb i think. see if it grows. i have to find out how to store it.

I could have probably sent you some seeds. My plant is dropping spent blooms and what I guess is the seed pods right now. I think I will go out and grab some and what the seed situation looks like on them. I may try some seed propagation as well.

esox, i had ordered some seeds on amazon.com. i got them today. 20 seeds. they came all the way from hong kong!! free shipping! wow! they r supposed to be perennial. i will plant them in jan or feb i think indoors.

Buying seeds off amazon.com or ebay.com is a crap shoot. At least it is for pepper seeds. Good luck and keep us posted on how they turn out.

By the way, what do they look like? Can you post a photo?

We had a hailstorm this year earlier, and it took off a lot of my midnight majestic, so I put them in my koi pond which it is planted next too... I had a lot of success and most of them rooted .. then I potted them they did wonderful even producing multiple blooms . My question is can I plant them in the ground now...that my new deck is finally done were I'm planting them...or would it be better to bring them in this 1 st winter ..??? Zone 4

I planted my seedlings in feb this year. Out of 20 seeds i got 5 that sprouted. I now have them in 3-4" pots. They are about 2"tall now. Thinking of setting them outside. The weather is warming up now.

I also have three ros growing. I picked some seed pods that were still there this spring before it started budding out. They are about 1" tall now. Getting some real leaves.

I will have to save some seeds this fall and plant them up. I just got rid of all the old dead wood a month ago.

How long does it take for the seeds to sprout. Are there any environmental requirements for germination?

I think it took about 10-14 days for my ros. The hibiscus ones were scattered over 2-3 weeks. I had them inside an old plastic cheery container. It had holes at the top so they wouldnt damp off. Had them in a south facing window. I didnt use a warming mat. I soaked the seeds overnight in warm water.

I planted the hibiscus feb 3. And the ros not till early april. These are my ros.

Hello - have read posts from august 2006 thru may 2017 and didn't quite find my answer - have hibiscus (not sure which kind or name of it) that has center stem about 8 foot tall, then others about 6 foot and then others about 4 foot, all from one main stem about one inch diameter, inside the house, in large pot - top stem really bending over - is it safe to cut it, and try to re-root it in the same pot - plant has given off some flowers last two years, none right now - has always been inside in sunroom - am in northwest pa - thanks in advance for any help so can save plant - tex - 7/27/18 2008hrs.

since new here, I guess I should have added my email texactii@verizon.net when I wrote the post above, in case anyone can help - again, thanks - tex -7/27/18 2012hrs.

Can you post pictures?

I can try, if you tell me how to post the pics - thanks, tex - 7/30/18 1437hrs.

Write a short comment and you will see a small camera icon above the green "Submit" button. Click on camera icon, go to your camera pictures, choose the one you want to post and click on "done" or a prompt that your camera has, once the picture is uploaded to your comment, press the green Submit button and you will see the comment and the picture posted to this thread.

Adna, don't post email or other personal info in your comments for security reasons. There's a private message button in you profile page, you can privately message someone without disclosing your private information to other members of the garden forum.

Okay, I think I understand how to put a pic on here so I will give it a try in a few minutes - not sure about the private message button so will just post here,abiding to your suggestion - thanks, tex - 7/30/18 1534hrs.

Trying to post pic of plant that is too tall, that I described above, and need help in not killing it but possibly trim it shorter - thanks, tex - 7/30/18 1606hrs.

looks like the first pic, showing how the top is bent over sideways, seems cut off at the top, so trying to post it again in this post (the pic above of the pot shows the small thin trunk - the other thing is the pole trying to keep the plant straight, with the white ribbon tying it off) - thanks, tex 7/30/18 1624hrs

Adna, cut the sideways branch all the way to the point were it is vertical or little lower than that, make cuttings out of your trimmed branches and you will have new trees for gifts :)

One other thing is that, never root a cutting in the same container with the large tree, root congestion is not good in the long term. Always root your cuttings separate from each other.

When did you last repot your large tree? Sometimes when a tree goes on the decline, it is rootbound. Hibiscus will flower on the new growth, so if you prune the whole tree and branches to half size, it will flower again. Are you giving it lots of sun?How do you feed your tree?

Hibiscus have VERY vigorous root systems and should undergo an annual repotting. Root congestion is stressful and limiting, and I've never grown a hibiscus that didn't pack the pot tight (no matter what size it might be) with roots in a single growing season. Repotting is different than potting up, in that it includes bare-rooting, root-pruning, and a complete change of soil. Potting up ensures the plant will be perpetually limited and denied a good deal of its potential, at least until a human gets his/her hands into the root mass and corrects the congestion and problem roots. Symptoms of root congestion include but aren't limited to - weak growth; lack of extension in branches and stems; aborted blooms; and the plant's tendency to shed foliage close to the trunk, leaving most of the foliage concentrated in tufts near apices (growing branch tips).

Al

Thank you, Al for chiming in! I have learned so much from your posts, comments over the 2 year period that I am on these forums. I recognize the importance of repotting and root pruning of container trees and I gained so much knowledge from the observations of my own trees/houseplants in containers.

Okay - thanks for the suggestion on how to keep the plant alive, and cut the top off - wife had just put it in a bigger pot the day I first got on here to ask for help - have had the plant about four years and has been doing fine - have kept it inside year round - mainly because it is such a pain to keep moving that big of a pot - all that info you posted Al, will take some time for me to read and understand - thank you - thanks for your help too "Canada sunshine" - I will try to save access to here, so I can come back and let ya'll know how everything goes - again, thanks - Tex - 7/31/18 0854hrs.

I have grown mostly from seeds.
I did have success from a cutting on my tropical this spring. I just cut off a branch that was growing outwards. Then i scored it at the bottom inch or so, then i stuck it in a pot with potting soil. Watered the dirt first. I set it on the east side of the house under an overhang. It got morning sun afternoon shade.
It was a really rainy month. And it has buds on it now. Was hoping it would bloom soon. Roots are growing out the bottom a little bit, so will have to pot it up soon.

Here is a hardy hibiscus i grew from seed. I used small size sunday cups from the DQ. Poked a hole in the bottoms and one at the top of the cover. Used potting soil. I scored the seeds with a razor blade a little.
Set them with covers on in a south facing window. When the get a couple inches tall i took off the covers for 1/2days cover on at night again for a couple weeks. Then took off covers. Potted up when this one was 4-5” tall. Set it outside on east side of house.

I have had my tropicals in the same pot for 3-4yrs. i just potted up this spring. Going to have to cut them back a bit for winter. I set them in a south facing window inside all winter. They go dormant. Then feb march they start growing again.
I know Al doesnt recommend it, but i use 30-15-30 fertilizer every two weeks. I dont fertilize in the winter.

Thanks for the kind words, Sunshine.

If you reduced the P content by 10% and added that 10% to the K content, you'd have 30-5-40, which would be just about right for hibiscus. If you intend to keep using the 30-15-30 for hibiscus, I'd suggest that each time you fertilize/fertigate, you include a relatively liberal dose of Dyna-Gro's ProTeKt, 0-0-3 to increase the amount of K your plants get. Not only will they appreciate the extra K in the ProTeKt, the opaline silica it contains will increase the plants resistance to temp extremes, moisture extremes, and will make predation more difficult for insects with sucking/ rasping/ piercing mouth parts. I use a 3:1:2 ratio fertilizer (Foliage-Pro 9-3-6) with added ProTeKt to jack the ratio to about 3:1:4 ...... and that's still rather high in P for hibiscus. Maybe Mother Nature is cutting me some slack because I do a full root-prune/repot annually for all hibiscus I grow or have grown.

Al

Okay Cindy z4 - will try the same way - moist potting soil and mild sun since it made it for you - thanks, Tex - 8/1/18 1103hrs.

Hey Al and Cindy - when you say you are "fertilizing every two weeks", I assume you mean a liquid mixture, instead of just watering. Does this mean that you turn over the soil, so that the food gets all the way down to the root tips, or do you use a tube/straw to get the food to the roots. I would think that the top half, or so, of the pot, is all that would get the food, which would mean that the roots would try to start growing "up" for food instead of stay down to strengthen the hold. If I am way off base, please educate me - thanks, Tex - 8/1/18 1112hrs.

You're somewhat off the mark, but that's no big deal. I fertilize hibiscus with Foliage-Pro 9-3-6 with some ProTeKt 0-0-3 for the added K (potassium) and the opalene silicon it contains. I actually fertilize weekly in the summer at well above the recommended production rate when temperatures allow. Regardless of what type of fertilizer you use, watering from above carries nutrients in available form down to the roots. Also, it doesn't take much in the way of anchoring roots to keep a plant secure in the pot. When I repot, I concentrate on removing a VERY large % of the large roots that aren't directly attached to the base of the plant at the root to shoot transition zone.

Roots can't 'sense' where water and nutrients might be. They are opportunists that only grow where conditions are favorable. Roots won't grow through unfavorable conditions to reach a nutrient/water source, no matter how near the rewarding conditions might be, because they have no way of 'knowing' they exist anywhere but in the spatial positions they already occupy.

Al

Thanks for the "schooling" Al - I understand now - here are 4 pics of the top piece I cut off - there is wilting on the top leaves, and on the

new shoot that was starting before I cut - I cautiously scraped off about an inch of the bark on the bottom - it is just in plain water, in the 12 inch full water pitcher.

About how long does it take before I need to put it in soil.

Just want to add that I a appreciate the willingness of ya'll to take time to provide info - thanks, Tex - 8/1/18 1309hrs.

whoops - guess 4th pic didn't make it on last post - thanks, Tex - 8/1/18 1322hrs.

I did my cutting in early spring was just putting out new growth.

I live in zone 6B (central NJ). I saw one poster mentioned dividing hardy hibiscus. We have a problem with the soil pressing against the basement walls to the point where they bowed in and so we must put down a patio (it will be concrete) instead of having the beds against the house.

I have had this plant for over 10 years. I would like to save it, if possible. I would say it is now about 6 feet from end to end (yardstick on the ground), and at least 4 feet high, although you can see a stem from last year that looks closer to 5'-6'. I am not sure what variety this is, but the color is beautiful and it just opened today for the first time this year. I think it would be too much to try to dig it out, as it is too large. I am not sure I can wait until the fall to gather the seeds and throw them down in another area.

Do you think it can be divided and moved that way? How exactly would you do that? Could you do it now, or is it best in the fall?

Do you have any idea what it is? It is like a magenta color, the flower is maybe 9" or more. The flower has a reddish tinge toward the very center, but it seems to graduate toward the outer edge. I believe it was only one plant, but maybe it spread this much by reseeding itself.

I also have a question about the old stems. I like to leave the stems so I know how far the plant will spread, and not plant anything in it's way. However, I once pulled out the old dead stem chutes. I thought I'd hurt the plant because I don't think it grew well that year, but it has come back after that. You can see last year's spent stems in the middle photo. I am not sure I am following what posters meant about cutting the plant back. It sends up new stems, nothing grows on the old ones, so I don't understand why you'd want to cut them back, except for maybe appearance (and then what do you do with those stems when new ones come in?).

Someone above also mentioned layering, laying down a stem close to the ground, with the end sticking out, putting soil on top of the middle part, as you would with Russian Sage, causing new roots to form within 4-6 weeks. Has anyone tried that recently? If you do get roots, can you cut the new plant and replant it somewhere else? Where exactly do you cut it? I've layered Russian Sage, but only to spread the plant width; I have never cut it off after it took. Can this be done now in August or is it too hot? Will there be enough time before frost (roughly November) for a new plant to become hardy enough to replant in the fall?

Thanks!

PS Same question about moving Russian Sage - also against the house, you can see the end of a branch in the middle photo above. Thanks again!

Hardy hibiscus are easy to divide and transplant. I just take a spade and dig out whatever size I want. If it is 10 years old, it must be quite large. You could probably get several plants from that one plant. I always do it in the spring. I would think you could do it later this month or in Sept. Or you can pot it up and keep it over winter and replant in the spring. What I do, is pot it up and bury it, pot and all, in the garden. I wait until it shows growth in the spring and dig it up and it is ready to grow. I prefer to do it in the spring, but if it has to be moved now, I would certainly give it a try. I've had no problem doing it this way.

As far as the old stems. I cut them off at the ground in spring when they start to show new growth. All the new growth comes from under ground so the old stems are of no use to the plant.

Here is a photo of my tropical hibiscus that i grew from a cutting in June. First bloom!

I have some seedlings that i grew from seeds this spring. One is about a foot tall now. They were supposed to be hardy. Im wondering if i plant it in the ground now since its just grown this year, will it survive the winter? Would it be better to leave it in a pot and winter it inside for the first year?

I would bring it indoors the first year.

Yah, I would bring it in as well. Your zone is on the northern limits and I wouldn't risk it. Plant it out next spring and it should be fine going into the next winter.

Thanks, all for your ideas. I spoke with a gentleman from Rare Finds Nursery (Jackson, NJ) who astutely pointed out what I had overlooked: the ground would have to be leveled before concrete is poured; that would necessitate commercial machinery which could be used to dig out the plant (far too big to bring inside) and carry it to a different area of the garden to replant. I should be able to hold off until the end of September, when it would be more optimal and less hot. They think it will have enough time to establish itself in the new spot. That sounds like a good plan to me. At worst, I will have to buy a new plant next summer.

Does anyone have any idea what variety that is?

Cindy, that is a beautiful color! It is so similar to mine! Your caption (8/12/18) says that it is a TROPICAL, while your next post says they are supposed to be hardy. Hardy hibiscus and tropical hibiscus are two completely different things with different botanical names, as I am sure you are already aware.

Thanks again for all of your help.

Yes. I have both tropical and hardy ones. The only one i had success at rooting from a cutting was my tropical one. The hardy ones i grew from seed.

Yes. I have both tropical and hardy ones. The only one i had success at rooting from a cutting was my tropical one. The hardy ones i grew from seed.

That's so cool, Cindy. I think there were at least 6 flowers actually blooming yesterday. If I am able to successfully move them, in future years I will be able to see them out of the window instead of having to check on them by going outside. They are BEHIND the orange pot, not IN it.

Wanna,
Those look like my lunas.
Mine are by the house too.
Maybe if i get seeds, i can grow more and plant so i can see out my window too.

They look a lot like my Red Lunas, although, not quite as "Red".

Esox07
These were a three in one.
One is a deeper red, one is pink,
And now i see a bud for a whiteish color one. Will post a pic when the white one blooms. Its a much smaller plant. I had planted them all together in the ground.

I got a white with pink on my 3 in one luna! So all three plants made it!
Just this one is much smaller.

I have bern trying to grow lunas from seeds for 2years now. most die when i set them outside in shade. so this year ive decided to keep them inside overcwinter and see if they make it. I only got 5 seedlings out of like 10 seeds, but they sprouted late. must mot have been warm enough.

i only have three left, which two are looking really good. one is still in its covered container, not looking too good. really thin stem.

today i took a cutting from the back of the luna outside in the ground. i have it in a pot with a plastic bag over it as the weather here has cooled off again. So will see what happens with that.