Re: website/orders

Hey James

Yes, they grow in the Sarasota area. Jim Singer lives near there and he has them. I noticed many growing in the L.A. area and that gets colder than that part of Fl. I actually left one out all winter long and while this was a mild winter we did have several days of frost. I had it on the south side of my house. It did lose it's leaves but they are coming back now. The key to overwintering in a cooler location is keeping them on the dry side. Not completely dried out but dry side. This prevents fungus from getting started.

Many folks James, grow them exclusively inside. They are a big thing in Germany, Sweden and to a lesser extent in Canada. I gave one away to a friend who lives in the Sierra and her only question six months later was how to prune them when they get bigger than they want. Their flowering is truly triggered by the amount of light they get. My brother kept his outdoors all winter and they bloomed the entire time.

With any plant, as you know, a sudden change in it's environment will cause stress. It's always better to aclimatize your plant by bringing it indoors in stages. Hibiscus show this stress by shedding leaves. They turn yellow and fall off. Since it's an evergreen typically you will find new leaves under the yellowing ones.

For being a tropical plant, unless you let it freeze completely, it really is pretty hardy.

DF


James R. Fisher wrote:

David:
   Would your Hibs. be hardy outdoors in Gulf-coastal Florida,
say Sarasota in Z 9-10 ? It does regularly get a few degrees
of frost every year though... Root hardy if not top hardy ?
   Another question: how do the plants behave when brought
in, in the fall out of the humid air into a house which gets
progressively cooler and dryer as the fall makes way to
winter ? Defoliate ?
-jrf

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