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Hibiscus: How to Plant, Grow, and Care for Hibiscus Flowers | The Old Farmer's Almanac

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Hibiscus

Photo Credit
Bryan Pollard/Shutterstock
Botanical Name
Hibiscus syriacus, H. moscheutos, H. coccineus
Plant Type
Trees, Shrubs, and Vine
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Part Sun
Soil pH
Slightly Acidic to Neutral
Bloom Time
Summer
Fall
Flower Color
Blue
Multicolor
Pink
Purple
Red
White
Hardiness Zone
5
6
7
8
9
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How to Plant, Grow, and Care for Perennial Hibiscus

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With huge, dinner-plate colorful flowers, perennial hibiscus plants add a bold, tropical effect to the garden. They are also highly attractive to butterflies and hummingbirds! Here’s how to plant, grow, and care for hibiscus.

About Hibiscus

There are many types of hibiscus. This growing guide covers perennial hibiscus which are grown for their strikingly beautiful, big, disc-shaped, hollyhock-like flowers that can measure up to 12 inches across.

Perennial hibiscus can grow up to eight feet tall but also there are dwarf varieties of only two to three feet tall. 

Planting

When to Plant Hibiscus

Hibiscus can be purchased as young plants from nurseries and best planted in the spring. Or, they can be rooted from a cutting in the spring.

If you wish to grow hibiscus from seed, sow indoors 12 weeks before the last spring frost date. Soak seeds in very warm water for one hour before sowing. Alternatively, seeds can be sown outdoors after the last expected frost date.

Choosing and Preparing a Planting Site

  • Choose a site that gets full sun; they’ll grow in partial sun but not flower as well.
  • Hibiscus prefer well-draining soil with plenty of organic matter, and neutral to slightly acidic soil.
  • To avoid breakage of the long stems, plant hibiscus where they won’t be exposed to strong winds.

How to Plant Hibiscus

  • Plant potted hibiscus plants so that their stems are just at the soil surface.
  • To root a cutting in the spring, cut off a branch that is 5 to 6 inches long and strip off lower leaves. Plant cutting in a pot with a mix of three parts sand and one part peat. Roots should form with a few weeks. Transplant from pot into ground.

  • The hibiscus species that die back each year can be spaced 2 to 3 feet apart. Consider the potential height and width (up to 12 feet and 10 feet, respectively) of a mature plant before planting.

  • Water well at the time of planting.

Growing

How to Care for Hibiscus

  • Hibiscus needs frequent watering, especially when young and new. When watering, do so deeply and thoroughly, drenching the plant.
  • Mulch around the plant to retain moisture and to provide winter protection for the roots.
  • To encourage rebloom, either remove the spent flowers before they form seed heads or prune plants back by one third after a flush of bloom is finished.
  • Perennial hibiscus will freeze back to the ground each winter; cut old stems to the ground.
  • Hibiscus bloom on new wood (this year’s growth), so pruning is best done in the spring.
  • In early spring, remove dead stems from established plants and apply a balanced fertilizer.
  • Mature plants can be divided in the spring, not fall.
Recommended Varieties

Scarlet Swamp Hibiscus (H. coccineus): This plant, also known as Texas Star, has 5-petaled, brilliant-red flowers. It grows to a height of seven feet each growing season, dies back to the ground every winter, and resprouts in spring.

Rose Mallow (Hibiscus moscheutos): This is the classic dinner-plate hibiscus due to the large size of its flowers. These large, fast-growing plants bloom from August to October and each plant may flaunt several 10 to 12 inch wide flowers at once. A few of the many popular cultivars are:

  • ‘Anne Arundel’ has pink flowers, nine inches in diameter, on plants five feet tall.
  • ‘Kopper King’ has light pink to white flowers with a burgundy center, 12 inches in diameter, with coppery red deeply cut leaves.
  • ‘Lady Baltimore’ is a popular old variety with pink flowers and red centers, on plants five feet tall.
  • ‘Lord Baltimore’ is another old variety with red flowers on five foot tall plants.

 

Wit and Wisdom
  • The plant has been used to soothe headaches, aching limbs, coughs, and inflammations. 
  • Hibiscus tea is made from parts of a different type of hibiscus, Hibiscus sabdariffa—also known as Roselle or Florida Cranberry. It’s native to West Africa, but is now grown across Central America, the Caribbean, and even Florida.
  • In Victorian times, giving a hibiscus blossom to a person meant that the giver was acknowledging the receiver’s delicate beauty. Learn about more about the language of flowers.
Pests/Diseases

Insect pests of hibiscus include aphids, whiteflies, and Japanese beetles. 

Clean up all plant debris to avoid fungal diseases which can cause leaf spot.
Don’t crowd plant and keep much from touching stemsm to avoid blight. 

Flowers
Perennials

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Comments

Eileen (not verified)

1 week 2 days ago

What hibiscus for medicinal use would do well in NW Washington State (north or Seattle)?

Hi Eileen, Thanks for your question. Rose of Sharon and Roselle are two that are rated to grow in your hardiness zone. Both are perennial shrubs that can grow rather large over time. When considering where to plant—whether in the ground or in a container—follow the tips above for planting and care. Hibiscus is a tropical plant so special care needs to be taken for them to thrive in areas where temperatures drop near freezing. In colder climates, gardeners may prefer to plant them in containers so they can be brought indoors during winter. You can also connect with your local Cooperative Extension for more varieties to plant that are suitable to your area.

Rosalee (not verified)

4 months 3 weeks ago

This site has had the simplest and most appreciated information on my plant. I was always told to not let it seed out
but it seems I don't have to worry about that ? I have dug up portions and given to friends thru the years. Thanks for
making it easy !

Anne (not verified)

7 months 1 week ago

Fairfield Conn. has a fantastic Hibiscus grove/plantation in front of the Staples store; (@ Exit 22); I'll go there today to see how big the Hibiscus flowers are~: )

Linda Albertson (not verified)

8 months 3 weeks ago

Is there a hardy Hibiscus plant for Zone 3?