Hibiscus - Care Tips

Flamboyant showgirl with sparkling heart

Lots of shiny green leaves, a wealth of striking flowers and easy to handle too. Nice bonus: hibiscus peaks when the rest of the garden has passed its peak.

The hibiscus is not very suitable as a cut flower.

Opulent flowering, elegant branches and tempting flowers that you want to touch, to check whether they are real. Garden Hibiscus is a relaxed bloomer that gives the entire garden a boost at the end of the summer. Hibiscus syriacus, as its official name is, is also called althea bush. It is a fresh, green plant, which is also grown as a tree on a trunk. Garden Hibiscus blooms from July to autumn with beautiful bell-shaped flowers. They can have single or double petals and vary from violet-blue to red, yellow, lilac and pure white. They all have a red-purple flower heart with beautiful stamens.

FROM CHINA

Hibiscus belongs to the Malvaceae family, a genus of about 220 plants that are found in the wild in subtropical and tropical regions. It is the larger half-brother of houseplant Chinese rose and has okra, cotton, hollyhock and Abutilon as close relatives. The plant is native to China and traveled to Western Europe via India, Syria and Turkey. On the way he made an impression everywhere: even on the Taj Mahal you can find hibiscus motifs. Here, since the 19th century, garden hibiscus has been a popular plant that deserves a good location, because it will last for years and bloom more beautifully every year.

BEAUTIFUL LATE FLOWER

Hibiscus is hardy, but a real late bloomer. Do not think that the plant is dead when it is still bare and the rest of the garden is already sprouting. Garden Hibiscus just needs a little longer to get out of its dormancy. Hibiscus blooms also peak later, in August and September. When the rest of the garden has already passed its peak, this shrub will go completely loose and produce endless new buds. One of the most fairytale features of garden hibiscus is that the flowers largely close in the evening and reopen in the sun the next day. This way the plant really lives with you.

HIBISCUS TRIVIA

Its name is Latin for marshmallow, a related plant (Althea officinalis) that is the main ingredient of the delicacy of the same name.

In India the plant is called sapatthu mal, which means shoe flower. The petals are used to polish shoes.

In the early 1940s, Hollywood was in the grip of a hibiscus hype. Movie star Dorothy Lamour wore the flowers in her hair in 'Aloma of the South Seas' (1940) and 'The Road to Utopia' (1944).