Enlightenment

[Charlie]

HVH does not offer Enlightenment for sale. This variety is distributed by a wholesale grower to nurseries as one of the Bahama Bay series of hibiscus and was patented by Barry Schlueter. A couple of years ago I saw a pot of Enlightenment at a local nursery and, reading the plant tag, decided to buy it based on the claim of "10 inch flowers". I was surprised that after growing it for a couple of years in our greenhouse, and seeing dozens of bright blooms, that they all were about 6 inches in size with a few reaching perhaps 7 inches. This was right next to varieties such as Fantasy Charm and Strawberry Cream that routinely reached 10 inches in the same conditions.

So today I was researching hibiscus plant patents and came across the actual patent for Enlightenment (ain't the internet great!). Right there in the description was "flower diameter - 15 cm" which is 6 inches (5.9 to be accurate). So, whose idea was it to market this variety as having "10 inch flowers"? Checking the Bahama Bay website I see that it is still being described as having 8-10 inch flowers. Buyer beware, as always.

We all learn about our new hibiscus over time and sometimes our knowledge changes as new observations are made, but deliberate deceptions about hibiscus are way too common as can be seen in exaggerated photos and claims made online and even on plant tags. It's not fair to hibiscus enthusiasts and, well, it's just not right.

My two cents.

Charlie

[helixturnhelix]

I agree with your description of Enlightenment.  I grew Enlightenment when I first started growing hibiscus, along with varieties that I could find at the nursery.  I remember how I kept waiting for those 10' flowers and had 5-6 inch flowers all the time.  The flowers were pretty, but it wasn't something that was a WOW variety and colors faded badly in the sun. Not really worth space in any collection, if anyone likes the color combination of this variety get Rainbow Sherbet. 

Enlightenment had an upright bush, but it was an open growth habit and had small unattractive leaves like garden hibiscus varieties.  Rainbow Sherbet has large glossy leaves and a great bush, it does resist branching, but when it starts it looks great.  I was fortunate to see a large Rainbow Sherbet at the Open House last year in May and it was an amazing sight to see!  Very large colorful flowers on every branch!  I have grown both Rainbow Sherbet and Enlightenment and Rainbow Sherbet is a better choice for anyone who finds the advertised blooms of Enlightenment appealing. 

[Charlie]

Interesting comments and comparison, Chris. I guess I'm a little irked at Schlueter/Hines for the deceptive advertising because I made a bunch of crosses on Enlightenment based on the claim of 10 inch flowers. Flowers that size are still a rarity although there are more of them now than there used to be. Enlightenment is just not one of them, based on both our experiences plus the patent information. The patent revealed that the parents are Georgia's Pearl and Jason Blue so at least there is some 8" size in the genetic heritage that might work out ok in some of my crosses, particularly those with big flowers like Bridal Path and Maui Masterpiece that I used when making them. Also some with Rainbow Sherbet, come to think of it.

Charlie

[helixturnhelix]

Nice crosses Charlie, I am interested to see some rainbow sherbet offspring  

I was pretty disappointed with this plant,  though now that I think about  it, it bloomed pretty well in full desert sun.