Re: [SG] Help Please!
- To: s*@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU
- Subject: Re: [SG] Help Please!
- From: M* T* <m*@ECSU.CAMPUS.MCI.NET>
- Date: Sat, 2 Jan 1999 14:16:55 -0500
>Date: Fri, 1 Jan 1999 15:06:30 EST
>From: Jennifer Sheppard <Jennys2@AOL.COM>
>Subject: Re: Help Please!
>
>Hi, we had an ice storm last week. As most of you are used to this sort of
>weather, I'm not! Now our crazy weather is back in the 50's, I am looking
>at several dead or hopefully playing dead plants!!!
>I have 5 Hibiscus, that look dead- should I shear them to ground in hopes
of a
>return?
Maybe :-) Are they tropical, or hardy varieties?
If they are hardy, are they the woody Althea/hardy hibiscus/Rose of
Sharon? If so just ignore them, they will be fine in spring.
If they are the hardy herbaceous swamp hibiscus, you can cut down the
hollow canes to about 6 inches. If you're feeling energetic, go ahead and
mulch them with 3-4 inches worth.
If they are tropical, are they grafted or own root? If they are grafted
tropical hibiscus, they are dead. If not, then they *may* come back from
the roots. Worth waiting for, they won't 'pop' until late spring, and they
will be coming back from the ground. Go ahead and cut them back to the
ground and mulch them with about 6-8 inches of dirt and hope for the best.
>I have 5 Mandaville vines that look dead also, should I cut them to the
ground
>too?
Cut them back to 2-3 inches and mulch them with 8-10 inches of dirt. They
should be fine, coming back from the roots. Another heat lover with a late
spring return.
>I have 2 winter Jasmines, that look partially dead!
Should be ok, we need to use the extremely hardy variety to even have a
chance. :-)
>My Gardenias made it (!!) I'm really shocked!
They are tougher than they look. :-)
It sounds like you are a lot warmer than us, I would probably compare you
to coastal South Carolina around Myrtle Beach, or maybe even a bit warmer.
We are officially zone 8, but zone 7 is just 15 miles west and 50 miles
north of us. ;-)
>I also think our Hawthorns are dead:( So, should I wait till early spring and
>cut back and hope they will all have new growth? Or should I cut back now, or
>just come out of denial and toss them out??
Hmmm, Indian Hawthorns? I think they should be fine, we don't have any.
We have a lot of transplants in our area (people, not plants :-)) who have
lived in tropical places. I spent 5 years loving Hawaii about 8 years ago.
A lot of us here have the bad habit of trying to push the hardiness limits
with lush tropical growth. Sounds like you usually have better luck with
Mother Nature than we do. :-)
>
> Thank you for any comments!
> Jennifer Sheppard
> North Louisiana
> zone 8
>
Matt Trahan <matttrahan@ecsu.campus.mci.net> or <garden@juno.com>
USDA zone 8, AHS heat zone 7, Sunset zone 31, northeastern N.C.
