Where did it all start?

[helixturnhelix]

I didn't really know where to put this, but I think that it will work here, im going to say this is the miscellaneous section:P   I was just curious how everyone got into growing hibiscus.  What was that one plant or moment that started it all?

For me it was a grocery store potted variety, mandarin wind and my first exotic was actually Rainbow Sherbet, I guess getting a good one really started it all.  I found the colors of all these exotics fascinating and the fact that weather influenced pigment expression and the diversity of offspring from crosses really served to fuel my interest further.  This eventually lead me to collect the 20 cvs I have now, in hopes of hybridizing new varieties.  That will have to wait for the time being, due to space restrictions, but I can still build my collection

Charlie, I was especially curious as to how it all started for you.  Were you always into horticulture or was this a hobby that became a business?

Anyways I look forward to hearing from all of you.

-Chris

[Darkhorse]

I had a couple garden variety hibs and wasn't particularly interested in them.  They, along with a couple of my other plants, developed a bad aphid infestation.  I didn't know what the aphids were so I looked up "hibiscus pests" or something along those lines.  I actually ended up at HVH's website and started looking at cv photos.  I was in awe at Voodoo Magic... haha... amongst others.  Anyway, I ended up ordering a Voodoo and was hooked from there.

[Charlie]

Good thread, Chris! The Mandarin series and others from Yoder Brothers were some of my first, too.

I followed my father into his business after college, but my heart wasn't in it. Good money for a 20 something but I lived for my hobbies and time off. When I turned 40 I decided to change, and so got into horticulture. First I worked for someone else learning propagation and then started my own company. It was obvious from the beginning that the established nurseries had the well known plants tied up, like roses and geraniums and so forth. No way to compete with them but the specialist market was and still is open to new plant and ideas. I tried a lot of different species and sold a lot of interesting and odd plants until I discovered the hibiscus hybrids that were barely a blip on the market. During that time I also worked with the old-fashioned type hibiscus like the Mandarin series.

I ordered my first exotic type hibiscus from a rare plant catalog and it arrived as a tiny rooted cutting named 'Donna Lynn'. I forgot all about it until some months later when it bloomed for the first time. At 8 inches and with multiple colors it was the most amazing hibiscus bloom I had ever seen. I knew right away that if there were other varieties similar to this one there would definitely be a market for them. Number 1 rule before growing anything for sale - make sure there is a market.

I grew a bunch of 'Donna Lynn' plants while beginning the search for more varieties. That led me to the newly formed hibiscus mail list on the internet which I joined. I also found out about a guy up in Pasadena (part of Los Angeles) who had collected over 400 varieties by visiting the tiny specialist nurseries in Florida and bringing them back. He was more than willing to let me take cuttings of his plants, so I was off and running. I also wrote to Larry Johnson, a commercial hibiscus grower in Florida then but now retired, and asked him if he would sell me some cuttings. I did not hear anything for some weeks, and then out of the blue a big box full of cuttings arrived, no charge. Larry was like that, being a retired fireman who loved hibiscus he would share wood with anyone. Anyway, between Larry and the guy in Pasadena I started building a collection that would soon number over 1000 varieties. I met hybridizers Dale Dubin and Barry Schlueter online and both of them sent me dozens of their varieties plus other show winner types.

All that happened within a year, but it was the following year that enamored me forever with hibiscus. That was the year that all those new varieties that I received as cuttings bloomed for the first time. Every day I would wake up and be greeted with several new flowers that I had never seen before plus new blooms of ones already seen. It was quite a feast for the eyes! And really exciting for me.

Then John Bagnasco, who was a VP of Armstrong Garden Centers, heard what I was doing and tracked me down. At our meeting he told me that he had been interested in the new hibiscus for several years but had no source for them. He offered to buy all that I could grow and so HVH was off and running. That was the beginning of more work but more fun than I had ever had and still continues to be both.

Charlie

[Nievesgirl]

For me it started when I was 16 years old ( around that time??) I was into photography and my dad bought me a camera for Christmas. I have loved animals since I was 10, so whats a girl to do with a camera ? of course take pictures of animals lol. I would take pictures of my dogs , and wanted to take pictures of wild birds in my area. Before this interested happened I have saved a hummingbird, I found the poor little guy on the floor in someone's driveway while I was walking my dog. I like most animals But hate most birds ( I only like a few types usually the ones you can't have for pets ) hummingbirds are probably one of my favorites and while I was learning to take pictures I saw many websites with nice pictures of hummingbirds. I wanted to take similar pictures of hummingbirds. I had no garden at the time so I searched the net for what plants attract hummers.  I looked at the list of plants hummers liked and when to my local nursery and started to buy seeds. I bought morning glories ( which where all ready my favorite flower back then) , Zennia, columbine ( which never grew for me ), delphinium , and lupine. I then saw you could not buy Fuchsias as seeds so I went and bought a few types from home depot and local nursery.  I bought bird feeders and hummer feeders also.

After I got all of the stuff and my garden was growing I had many hummers come to my garden ! I was so happy and pleased , I would just sit out there and wait for hours to see these little guys. I did not have my camera with me most of the time because I wanted the hummers to get used to me first. As I watched the hummers I noticed they only likes a few flowers ( fuchsia, zennia, lupine) the rest of the flowers where pretty much ignored. I witness a hummers getting nectar from my morning glories ONLY ONE TIME lol.  So I went on the net again and looked at more info on hummers. I saw a plant called hibiscus and did not know what there at the time by name ( I had neighbors with them they where just flowers to me  ) I then saw pictures and said OOO they like Hawaiian flowers   So I searched the net for hibiscus and found a website called http://www.trop-hibiscus.com/  When I saw all of the pictures I fell in love !

I then searched exotic hibiscus and found Charlies website ! I was going crazy looking at all the beautiful flowers. I was 16 and had no money or bank account. I showed my mother and she was like OMG they are so pretty. I read like every page on Charlies website and saw that his plants where sold through Armstrong nursery ! My mom and I went to so many Armstrong nurseries looking for these hibiscus and finally found some!  I think the first cv we bought was the path and Jazz.  Every week we would go looking for more and I ended up with lookithat  , christmas frost , lavender ice , amethyst heart,  and two more I can't remember right now.

I also then inherited my grandmother roses , she had striped and different types of roses ! we would buy her new cv's when we found out roses came in cv's ( before the hibiscus stuff happened)  So I had roses , hibiscus , zennia, fuchsias, and morning glories. After all of this hibiscus crazy I went through can you believe only one hummer took interested in jazz lol. I soon found out that hummers see in UV vision or near UV vision. Most of the hibiscus cv's where not red or hot pink jazz has a nice hot pink ring around the center. All the other species of flowers I had where hot pinks, fuchsia , reds, hot orange colors my morning glories where light pale blue

I kind of slowed down on buying more hibiscus because winter was coming and I was running out of room. I  tried taking pictures of the hummers but these guys are super nosy ! They would look at my camera and looked at it like " what is that thing "  Every time they would do this so I had to sit out there with camera until they got used to it ( which was not really working lol)
After all of this work getting hummers to my garden this is the only picture I got



I still laugh till this day that this was the only picture I could get !

I then moved into apt and had to give my plants away  I bought gator pride , and monsteratt a few years later after we have been living in this apt now they both died because I bought them in  the fall and the there was no light on the balcony then. I assumed that no light hits are balcony for years until I noticed it only hits balcony in spring to the end of fall. And this is why I have a new collection now ! I have to buy t5's soon to keep them alive in the winter !

But back to the hummers as I am typing this one just came to visit my flowers ( wild dream bloomed ) .  Since everything is blooming I have a hummer visit everyday I don't know what species but it looks like a male cantaloupe hummer. I hear him at 6 am looking for flowers then he comes back when the sun is about to go down. I doubt I could get a picture of him I scare him a few times on accident. I heard him one time and I opened my curtains and he got surprised and another time I opened my sliding door and he just stared at me like what are you doing lol


PS sorry for the long story !

[Nievesgirl]

I just looked at a hummer website and I said cantaloupe lol I meant calliope. I used to call the cantaloupe hahaha  but it looks like my visitor is a Allen's hummer.

[helixturnhelix]

Nice story guys, really interesting how everyone started off! 

Charlie it is pretty interesting how that one plant really started it all for you.  Do you still have that original Donna Lynn?

Kerry I really liked your story, it sounds alot like my childhood, but mine was more fish obsessed   You mentioned that Wild dream bloomed... so where is the pic!

[Charlie]

Yes, I enjoyed hearing how people started, too. Kerry, I've had hummers sipping nectar from my hibiscus for years now but also only managed one photo, compliments of that particular hummingbird. One of the problems was that all the digital cameras I had before now had a terrible lag time when taking a pic which did not work for hummingbirds. The one photo I did get was because I had composed a shot of a pot of hibiscus and was all ready to take the photo when the hummingbird darted right into the middle of the shot and then hovered for enough seconds that i could press the shutter release and get the shot! My new camera has little to no lag and a pretty good long lens so maybe I can get some more shots in the future.

Chris, I grew a lot of Donna Lynns in the early years but I don't have it anymore. Beautiful flower but the bush was a low growing sprawler that wasn't very good for garden center sales.


Charlie

[helixturnhelix]

Nice pictures,  I have been noticing more hummers in the yard ever since I planted this hibs in the ground. 

Thats too bad about Donna Lynn, but it looks like Bubble gum fun is a better version of it?

[Darkhorse]

Hummingbirds like my hibs as well... it drives my cats crazy!!  One of the kitties is allowed on the porch, and she almost caught one of the little guys once!  I didn't see him again for awhile.

[Nievesgirl]

Yes, I enjoyed hearing how people started, too. Kerry, I've had hummers sipping nectar from my hibiscus for years now but also only managed one photo, compliments of that particular hummingbird. One of the problems was that all the digital cameras I had before now had a terrible lag time when taking a pic which did not work for hummingbirds. The one photo I did get was because I had composed a shot of a pot of hibiscus and was all ready to take the photo when the hummingbird darted right into the middle of the shot and then hovered for enough seconds that i could press the shutter release and get the shot! My new camera has little to no lag and a pretty good long lens so maybe I can get some more shots in the future.

Chris, I grew a lot of Donna Lynns in the early years but I don't have it anymore. Beautiful flower but the bush was a low growing sprawler that wasn't very good for garden center sales.


Charlie

HOW CUTE Charlie

Well I was working with film and film was expensive !!!!!

I think I am going to buy a shutter release so I can try to get some of my new friend.

[Cindy]

My hibiscus addiction began in Washington State where I lived in the Cascade Mountains. I already had a jungle of houseplants in my house - some over 10 feet tall. I had lived in the mountains for so many years that I had almost given up on trying to grow things outside. So I had a huge houseplant collection.

Someone gave me my first hibiscus. It was a garden variety pink with small plain flowers. But it bloomed constantly and loved my hottest, sunniest west window that few of my other houseplants could tolerate. I was hooked!

That little hibiscus and my giant houseplant collection actually played a part in Charlie and me getting together.... not too hard to imagine, I suppose. Two plant lovers meeting on the internet.... and so the story goes....   

[Nievesgirl]

My hibiscus addiction began in Washington State where I lived in the Cascade Mountains. I already had a jungle of houseplants in my house - some over 10 feet tall. I had lived in the mountains for so many years that I had almost given up on trying to grow things outside. So I had a huge houseplant collection.

Someone gave me my first hibiscus. It was a garden variety pink with small plain flowers. But it bloomed constantly and loved my hottest, sunniest west window that few of my other houseplants could tolerate. I was hooked!

That little hibiscus and my giant houseplant collection actually played a part in Charlie and me getting together.... not too hard to imagine, I suppose. Two plant lovers meeting on the internet.... and so the story goes....   

 Cindy that is too funny this is how I met my boy friend two reef aquarium lovers on the internet and so our story goes 

[helixturnhelix]

Looks like these forums are better than eharmony

[Cindy]

LOL Charlie and I actually met on a medical forum for a specific medical concern we both have in our families. It was a pretty intense forum, exploring the newest research, with lots of science and digging for info. We found ourselves wanting to go farther into the research than the other people on the forum, in our typical nutty way. Then we discovered a common interest in plants, and several other things.... as the story goes..... 

I do think that you can find someone that you have a lot in common with on the internet - often more easily than the random people you meet in your face-to-face life. Highly focused forums on specific topics seem to work well to unite people who share the same level of interest in the topic, I guess.  It's pretty intoxicating to find someone else who loves what you love at the same level as you. Then if they are crazy about LOTS of the same things you are into, true love could be in the air.....    It was for us!

Cindy

[Nievesgirl]

LOL Charlie and I actually met on a medical forum for a specific medical concern we both have in our families. It was a pretty intense forum, exploring the newest research, with lots of science and digging for info. We found ourselves wanting to go farther into the research than the other people on the forum, in our typical nutty way. Then we discovered a common interest in plants, and several other things.... as the story goes..... 

I do think that you can find someone that you have a lot in common with on the internet - often more easily than the random people you meet in your face-to-face life. Highly focused forums on specific topics seem to work well to unite people who share the same level of interest in the topic, I guess.  It's pretty intoxicating to find someone else who loves what you love at the same level as you. Then if they are crazy about LOTS of the same things you are into, true love could be in the air.....    It was for us!

Cindy

I know I think specific forums are great way to meet people. Its amazing ! I still tell my boy friend I can't believe we like the same things lol