Miniature CVs

[Nievesgirl]

are there any true miniature bushes out there ?

I have a CV that Charlie does not sell and it seems like the bush is a miniature , like a miniature rose bush.

its been doing great and should bloom soon.

[Charlie]

We talked about this in some thread last year but don't recall where. Hibiscus are not normally small plants, most growing to several feet of height or more in a few years if conditions allow it. You can force them to stay small by growing them in small pots and limiting light to just enough to keep them healthy. Cindy has a bunch of that type - all about a foot high in 4 inch pots in kitchen windows.

Naturally dwarf hibiscus are very rare, and ones of any consequence (good flower, bloom well, look decent) are extremely rare. Only one comes to mind - Double Date. This one has a pink double flower and blooms a lot but even in excellent conditions is very slow to grow to 2 feet in height. There are quite a few that may never get taller than the 2 to 4 feet range, but I'm having trouble remembering any that stay at 2 feet or under except for Double Date. Which cultivar are you growing that seems to be a dwarf, Kerry? I may have some experience with it and can relate that to you.

We aren't talking about the varieties used as potted plants that are heavily treated with growth retardants during production. Any hibiscus can be stunted using these chemicals. Also, some plants will have a disease or root problem or poorly healed graft that keeps them small and slow growing but other specimens of the same variety will show normal vigor so those don't count either.

Charlie

[Nievesgirl]

We talked about this in some thread last year but don't recall where. Hibiscus are not normally small plants, most growing to several feet of height or more in a few years if conditions allow it. You can force them to stay small by growing them in small pots and limiting light to just enough to keep them healthy. Cindy has a bunch of that type - all about a foot high in 4 inch pots in kitchen windows.

Naturally dwarf hibiscus are very rare, and ones of any consequence (good flower, bloom well, look decent) are extremely rare. Only one comes to mind - Double Date. This one has a pink double flower and blooms a lot but even in excellent conditions is very slow to grow to 2 feet in height. There are quite a few that may never get taller than the 2 to 4 feet range, but I'm having trouble remembering any that stay at 2 feet or under except for Double Date. Which cultivar are you growing that seems to be a dwarf, Kerry? I may have some experience with it and can relate that to you.

We aren't talking about the varieties used as potted plants that are heavily treated with growth retardants during production. Any hibiscus can be stunted using these chemicals. Also, some plants will have a disease or root problem or poorly healed graft that keeps them small and slow growing but other specimens of the same variety will show normal vigor so those don't count either.

Charlie

Hi Charlie we talked about Carolina breeze before, But not sure if I asked about bushes being miniature ?
I asked on yahoo and got a interesting answer.  Someone has this cv for 6 years and it is only 2.5 ' tall ! would the aniti growth chemical keep  them small for 6 years ?  I also got an answer saying if I prune it it will grow out of the chemical ?? I did prune it and the new growth has slightly bigger leaves but not so much to notice

Do you think the chemical will still be in a plant that is not original ?  Remember I told you this one I have was grown from a cutting.


Im always thinking about the impossible lol I just never seen a small hibiscus bush so it just got me wondering

[Pachrian]

Hmm...hibiscus grown as bonsai. I wonder if anyone has ever tried that.

[helixturnhelix]

Hi Uli,

I am sure you could bonsai anything you want, but you probably wouldn't get very many blooms, if any, and these blooms would likely be small by comparison.  Small root system and leaves means not alot of energy to use to make flowers.

[Charlie]

We have a customer who lives in Hawaii who is a master bonsai grower. He expressed interest in working with hibiscus bonsai but I haven't heard whether he has tried it yet or not. Hybridizer Dale Dubin once told me that when he visited Japan he found a 100 year old hibiscus bonsai being taken care of in a temple there. The monks were going to extraordinary lengths to keep it alive but it was struggling at the time.

I think it would work based on the small plants in 4 inch pots that Cindy keeps on some windowsills. They don't grow much but do bloom (smaller than normal flowers but cute) and after awhile start to take on that gnarly bonsai look.

Charlie