Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!americast-post Newsgroups: americast.twt.misc From: americast-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: americast-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: Popularity of hibiscus is beginning to grow Date: Fri, 6 Nov 92 11:28:29 EST Message-ID: \SE F;TODAY'S HOME;DR.CATHEY SAYS \HD Popularity of hibiscus is beginning to grow \BY Jacqueline Heriteau One of the surprises of recent years is that the hibiscus, a big - a very, very big - tropical flowering shrub, has become one of the most popular houseplants. We keep ours from year to year, suffer its winter infestations of white fly, lug it in ever-larger pots upstairs to its winter quarters. Then down it goes to the porch for summer, and we remain captive to its trumpeting flowers with their fringed golden tongues. We thought we were in the minority. No more. Last weekend, shoppers at Eastern Market were buying up potted hibiscus as briskly as they do in spring when it's supposed to be a patio plant. Since the tropical Hibiscus rosa-sinensis does not survive winters north of Florida, we called Bill Aulenbach at Yoder Brothers Inc. - a major supplier of the plant - about this sudden interest. Bill said that distributors now need all the hibiscus his firm can grow in 52 weeks to supply the florists and garden centers. It's become popular! The most common question is: How do you care for a hibiscus in winter? There's one answer for those who have a sunny window - and another answer for those who do not. Tropical hibiscus is an energy-driven plant: It grows and blooms if it is getting lots of bright sun and is warm - above 70 degrees. Where or when doesn't matter too much - in summer in the ground, or as a potted plant on the porch, or in winter on the window sill. The interaction of sun and the chlorophyll in the green parts of the plant is what produces the nutrients that support its lavish production of one-day blossoms. In this area, if we have a sunny winter and if the plant gets full sun in an unobstructed southern window, a hibiscus that summered out in the sun will open most of its buds and continue to produce a modest amount of flowers throughout the winter. Give it the sunniest spot you've got, right up against the window. Keep the soil moist but not soggy. When a hibiscus dries out, two things happen: The leaves will yellow and drop and the buds will fall off. About twice each winter, add to the watering can 20-20-20 or 10-10-10 houseplant fertilizer. If your hibiscus stops growing and blooming, it's going into dormancy, probably for lack of sun and perhaps lack of warmth as well. Water a dormant hibiscus only enough to keep the soil from drying out, but not more. Don't fertilize. The plant will drop lots of leaves, but should live. In March or early April when the day is visibly longer, increased light levels will stimulate growth. This is the time to resume watering and fertilizing the dormant hibiscus. April and early May is the pruning season for all hibiscus. Remove withering or ugly branches, and cut the other branches back a quarter length to keep the plant shapely and to promote the production of new shoots. Bud formation will resume as light levels grow more intense. When night temperatures outside reach 70 degrees, put the hibiscus outdoors if you can. Start off in light shade and after a week or so, move it to the sunniest spot you've got. The main enemy of the hibiscus in winter is white fly. No one who has wintered one of these beautiful plants indoors can doubt that the white fly's passion for hibiscus equals that of its passion for pointsettias and tomatoes. White flies set up housekeeping and family rearing on the undersides of hibiscus leaves. Later they may joined by black specks that cover the flower buds. About the only insecticide we're invited to use indoors these days is insecticidal soap. Unfortunately, it doesn't do much to deter the white - or black - fly populations unless you get to them early. Begin by giving the hibiscus a vigorous hose shower before you bring it indoors. About those sticky yellow cards that supposedly get rid of white fly. The nurseries use them to monitor infestation. When the cards register a population explosion, nurseries bring out chemicals that are not available to us. But follow their lead. Hang a yellow card by the hibiscus and when you see more than a few white flies on it, take the plant into the shower and give it a thorough cleaning. If you have a shower head with a flexible extension, turn the leaves upside down and hose them with lukewarm water. Close the plant in the shower until it dries. Then spray insecticidal soap all over the tops and undersides of the leaves, and in the nodes where branches and leaves meet. It's easier to remove the soap from the shower than the walls - this is why you want to try the shower treatment. Many gardeneres plant hibiscus in their front yards for the summer. They grow and flower lavishly, supported by a widely growing root system. Well and good if you're planning to let the plant perish there over the winter. Getting an in-ground hibiscus to settle into a pot after a successful summer is a daunting task that requires lots of root pruning. For a standard, tree-form hibiscus, though, summering it in the ground gets it off to a fast start. Choose a young plant with a straight central stem or one that can be straightened with staking. Strip away side shoots and prevent others from forming until the trunk reaches the height you want. Then let top branches develop, but pinch them back often to create a rounded head and encourage lots of shoot growth. To get a fuller head sooner, start with three young plants that have fairly straight lead shoots. Prune back the lateral branches and braid the three lead shoots together. Think of a braided ficus trunk. When the braided stem reaches a desired height, start pruning the top branches back to create a rounded head. The soil Bill recommends at Yoder Brothers for potting and repotting is commercial soiless mix. It's easier to carry up and down stairs (!), lets air in, drains well and holds moisture. In coming months, look for a new white hibiscus introduction by Yoder called White Cloud. It's a blush pink in the bud and opens to pure white. This year's Yoder introduction was Tangerine in a bright orange. Salmons will be coming along soon, and new varieties of orange. Enjoy! Send your gardening questions to H. Marc Cathey, former director of the National Arboretum, hosts the WRC Talk Radio Gardening Show 980-AM from 7 to 10 a.m. Saturdays. Jacqueline Heriteau is the author of "The National Arboretum Book of Outstanding Garden Plants." Address questions to Dr. Cathey Says, c/o Home Section, The Washington Times, 3600 New York Ave. NE, Washington, D.C. 20002. This article is copyright 1992 The Washington Times. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM