Hibiscus
Growing hibiscus is an easy way to add a tropical flair to your garden. When you know how to care for hibiscus plants, you will be rewarded with many years of lovely flowers. Let’s look at some tips on how to care for hibiscus.
Traits: Sun, Coastal, Feature, Hedge, Container
A member of the mallow (Malvaceae) family, this genus contains over 200 annual or perennial herbs, shrubs, or trees. They are widely distributed throughout warmtemperate, subtropical, and tropical regions of the world. The epitome of tropical plants, they feature lush foliage and large flamboyant blooms in vibrant colors.
In their native regions, these plants were grown not only for their great beauty, but also for their edible leaves and flowers. Hibiscus species are relatively easy to grow, and while often used as a colorful stand-alone feature in the garden, some species can be trimmed to shape and make effective hedging or screening plants.
Hibiscus are deciduous shrubs with dark green leaves; the plants can grow to 15 feet tall in frost-free areas. Flowers may be up to 6 inches diameter, with colors ranging from yellow to peach to red. Hibiscus can be planted singly or grown as a hedge plant; they can also be pruned into a single-stemmed small tree. The flowers are attractive to butterflies and hummingbirds.
Flowering Season: Summer, Autumn, Winter, Spring
These are the basics for how to care for hibiscus plants in your garden. As you can see, they are a easy maintenance, high impact flower that will make a garden in any part of the world look like a tropical paradise.
Growing hibiscus in containers
Many people who are growing a hibiscus plant choose to do so in a container. This allows them to move the hibiscus plant to ideal locations, depending on the time of year. Hibiscus prefer a cozy fit when growing in a container. This means that they should be slightly root bound in its pot and when you do decide to repot, only give the hibiscus a little bit more room. Always make sure that your growing hibiscus plant has excellent drainage. Read More
Watering Hibiscus
When hibiscus are in their flowering stage, Your hibiscus will need daily watering in warm weather,they require large amounts of water. But once the weather cools, your hibiscus needs far less water and too much water can kill it. In the winter, water your hibiscus only when the soil is dry to the touch. Read More
Fertilizing Hibiscus
A growing hibiscus plant needs lots of nutrients in order to bloom well. In the summer, use a high potassium fertilizer. You can either use a diluted liquid fertilizer one a week, a slow release fertilizer once a month or you can add a high potassium compost to the soil. In the winter, you do not need to fertilize at all. Read More
What Hibiscus Fertilizer To Use
The best hibiscus tree fertilizers can be either slow release or water soluable. With either, you will want to fertilize your hibiscus with a balanced fertilizer. This will be a fertilizer that has all the same numbers. So, for example, a 20-20-20 or 10-10-10 fertilizer would be balanced fertilizer.
If you will be using a water soluble fertilizer, use it at half strength to avoid over fertilizing the hibiscus tree. Over fertilizing hibiscus plants and result in burning the roots or providing too much fertilizer, which will cause in fewer or no blooms or even yellow, dropping leaves. Read More
What Hibiscus Fertilizer To Use
The best hibiscus tree fertilizers can be either slow release or water soluable. With either, you will want to fertilize your hibiscus with a balanced fertilizer. This will be a fertilizer that has all the same numbers. So, for example, a 20-20-20 or 10-10-10 fertilizer would be balanced fertilizer.
If you will be using a water soluble fertilizer, use it at half strength to avoid over fertilizing the hibiscus tree. Over fertilizing hibiscus plants and result in burning the roots or providing too much fertilizer, which will cause in fewer or no blooms or even yellow, dropping leaves. Read More
What Hibiscus Fertilizer To Use
The best hibiscus tree fertilizers can be either slow release or water soluable. With either, you will want to fertilize your hibiscus with a balanced fertilizer. This will be a fertilizer that has all the same numbers. So, for example, a 20-20-20 or 10-10-10 fertilizer would be balanced fertilizer.
If you will be using a water soluble fertilizer, use it at half strength to avoid over fertilizing the hibiscus tree. Over fertilizing hibiscus plants and result in burning the roots or providing too much fertilizer, which will cause in fewer or no blooms or even yellow, dropping leaves. Read More
Temperatures for growing hibiscus
When you care for a hibiscus, you should remember that hibiscus flower best in temperatures between 60F – 90F and cannot tolerate temps below 32F. In the summer, Read More
Planting Instructions
Plant in spring, summer, or fall, spacing plants 3 to 6 feet apart. Dig a hole only as deep as the root ball and 2 to 3 times as wide. If your soil is in very poor condition, amend the soil you've removed from the hole with a small amount of compost. Otherwise don't amend it at all. Carefully remove the plant from the container and set it in the hole. Fill the hole half full with soil, then water it well to settle the soil and eliminate air pockets. Let the water drain, then fill the remainder of hole with soil and water thoroughly. Read More
Care
Hibiscus require at least 1 inch of rain (or equivalent watering) each week. They like to be constantly moist, but not wet. Feed twice a month during the growing season and prune as necessary to control plant size and cut back errant branches. Cut branches back to just above a side shoot. Hibiscus are sensitive to cold and should be protected when temperatures dip into the 30s; container-grown plants should be brought indoors. Check plants periodically for pests such as aphids, white flies, and mealybugs.
Use a horticultural oil or insecticidal soap to control these pests. Read More
Care
Hibiscus require at least 1 inch of rain (or equivalent watering) each week. They like to be constantly moist, but not wet. Feed twice a month during the growing season and prune as necessary to control plant size and cut back errant branches. Cut branches back to just above a side shoot. Hibiscus are sensitive to cold and should be protected when temperatures dip into the 30s; container-grown plants should be brought indoors. Check plants periodically for pests such as aphids, white flies, and mealybugs.
Use a horticultural oil or insecticidal soap to control these pests. Read More