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Volume 10, Issue 10 October 2009 |
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News from Hidden Valley Hibiscus
Last HVH Open House for 2009!
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 A Great Bloom Day! January in a Kitchen Window |
Overwintering in Cold Climates
Move them into the House
The place where hibiscus can stay warm without any extra cost is in your house. Although hibiscus are considered outdoor plants in the United States, in many parts of the world they are very popular houseplants, except for 2-3 months during summer when the pots may be set outdoors. Indoor hibiscus make attractive, green houseplants. They help clean the air trapped inside in winter, and give off extra oxygen. The greenery provides a wonderful backdrop to the drab and dreary weather of winter in many locations. And, every now and then, one of the hibiscus plants will bloom, providing a special indoor splash of color and beauty for that day.
Unless you live in Canada or northern Europe, you may not be accustomed to having hibiscus as houseplants, but they are easy to grow and quite suitable for indoor use. In the far north, or any place where temperatures regularly fall below freezing during winter nights, tropical hibiscus will perish if left outdoors. Bringing them inside the house is an easy solution to overwintering them, but how best to do it?
 Overwintering in the House Hibiscus 'Torch Song' |
The other main problem with placing hibiscus inside the house is finding space where there is adequate light. The closer to windows, the better for this purpose. But remember, hibiscus need warmth even more than they need light. So even if you only have room well away from windows, the hibiscus will do better there than if left outside or in an unheated garage. People have reported to us that directing just a little extra light to hibiscus in winter helps them stay green and healthy. A lamp placed nearby will help tremendously in a warm but rather dark area. What matters for hibiscus is the total amount of light they receive each day, so if the area tends to be dark you can leave a light on as much as 24 hours a day to help the hibiscus get what they need.
In the Newsletter for November we will examine indoor lighting solutions and other details that can help you to be successful with indoor hibiscus.
Garage, Shed, or Utility Room
If moving your hibiscus into the house is just not for you, then the next best strategy is to look for another solid structure where they can be kept over the winter. A garages, storage shed, utility room, or any other structure that keeps out cold wind and provides some protection against the winter weather can be made to work. Again, the goal is to provide as much warmth as possible and at least some light to keep the hibiscus going. A structure with windows that allows sunlight to enter is ideal, because the light will heat up the interior during the day and also provide the light energy needed by the hibiscus.
 Hibiscus Protected from Mild Freeze - Strung with Christmas Lights, Covered with Freeze Cloth Fastened with Clothespins |
Get creative!
Some hibiscus lovers use their office space to grow hibiscus during the winter months. Or perhaps a relative or friend has a suitable space where you can winter your hibiscus. Avoid using a space that is too far from where you normally spend time, because the hibiscus will need to be checked on at regular intervals, mainly for watering.
Overwintering in Warmer Climates
If you live in a warmer climate, where temperatures rarely fall below freezing, and when they do it is only for one or two nights before warming up again, then you may be able to winter your hibiscus outside by providing some simple protection measures. If your area has a history of having fewer than ten nights per year that fall into the high 20's (-2°C) or above and no nights colder than that, you have the possibility of protecting your hibiscus outdoors.
One of the best ways to protect outdoor hibiscus that are planted in the ground is to mulch over the root zone and around the main stem of the plant. A thick layer of leaves or compost can help protect the roots and keep them from freezing at night. This goes only so far though. For more protection, wrap the entire hibiscus bush in heavy frost cloth. This can add several degrees of freeze protection for the plants. In addition, you can run outdoor Christmas lights up under the frost cloth. During cold nights the lights can be turned on and the small amount of heat they give off will add several more degrees of warmth under the frost cloth. We have seen hibiscus bushes treated this way survive winters where temperatures reached as low as the 25°F (-4°C). A fully exposed hibiscus is usually severely damaged or killed by nights in the mid-20s, but just this amount of protection will prevent most frost damage.
Potted hibiscus in areas with just a few light freezes can be protected in other ways too. The pots can be moved up next to the house which will add a few degrees of warmth for them. A south or west wall with sun exposure during the day is another good place to locate the pots. Placing hibiscus under solid overhangs or under trees with thick canopies that prevent heat from radiating out into space at night also offer cold night protection. Some people report successful protection by tipping their potted hibiscus over on their sides and covering them with tarps or frost cloth on cold nights. Running Christmas lights under the tarps would afford even more protection.
Surviving an Unexpected Freeze
If your hibiscus are caught outside and unprotected by a sudden nighttime freeze, you can take action during the night to save them. This is a bad situation to be in, but does happen occasionally even in the mildest climates. It happened to us three winters ago, and we used this strategy to save our hibiscus. We keep a temperature sensor outside in the hibiscus garden that radios the temperature to an indoor display so we can monitor the temperatures the hibiscus experience. This sounds exotic, but it is actually a simple device that is widely available at garden centers, costs well under $50, and runs on batteries.
One night three winters ago, we watched in dismay as the temperature dropped to freezing, then below freezing and showed no signs of stabilizing. By midnight it had dropped to 27°F (-3°C) and there was no way to protect our in-the-ground hibiscus. I had heard that simply running sprinklers on tropical plants could protect them from a freeze, and I decided to try it since I was sure our hibiscus would not make it through this very cold night without serious damage. So I went outside and turned on all our sprinklers. Soon all the hibiscus were being sprayed by the pop-up sprinkler system that was originally installed to water the lawn. How could this help, you ask? Well, the water coming up out of the pipes below the ground is considerably warmer than freezing. As this relatively warm water fell on the hibiscus and coated them, it protected them with a blanket of warm water. However, it was so cold that night that the water began to freeze on the leaves! We watched in horror as more and more ice built up on the plants, certain that we would lose all our hibiscus. Our sprinkler idea certainly looked disastrous, but it turned out to be protective. The continuous spray of water kept the ice temperature right at 32°F (0°C) and prevented it from dropping any lower. At 32°F (0°C) for only a few nighttime hours, the sap inside the hibiscus didn't freeze. I left the sprinklers going until the air temperature rose above freezing the next morning and the ice melted off the hibiscus. Yes, we had a wet mess in the garden, and yes we wasted some water, but most of our hibiscus only sustained minor damage from that night and grew back the following summer as if they had never been through a hard freeze. We do not recommend this technique except in an emergency! But if you are ever faced with an unexpected hard freeze and unprotected hibiscus, a spray of water from sprinklers or hose will help keep the sap from freezing and prevent serious damage or death.
Older is Better
Tropical hibiscus can be grown and kept safe through winter, even in areas where freezing weather occurs. Remember, the main principle is to provide them with as much warmth as you can along with as much light as is practical in the warm area you place them in. The older the plants are the tougher they are in winter. We don't worry at all about our 10-year-old and older hibiscus. Their thick woody main trunk and stems are not much affected by minor frosts and freezes and they are able to grow new shoots to replace any damaged ones each summer. The biggest challenge is with hibiscus experiencing their first winter. For these plants we recommend an indoor, warm location whenever possible. If you provide the warmth, they will repay you with much beauty and enjoyment for years to come!
Hibiscus Gardens Around the World
 Hibiscus in California, USA |
This is Kent's hibiscus garden in Southern California, USA (at right). Kent has a very small garden area and packed as many hibiscus as he could into that area several years ago. But he still wanted more hibiscus! So he has grafted new hibiscus varieties onto his old, established hibiscus bushes, and the results are stunning, as you can see.
 Hibiscus in Croatia |
These hibiscus are growing in Croatia. Nina and Denis grow hibiscus in two different parts of Croatia - one quite cold, and one with a more Mediterranean climate. They both have greenhouses filled to overflowing with many different hibiscus varieties. Like Kent, Nina and Denis also graft many varieties onto their older hibiscus in order to save space, making both their greenhouses gorgeous showcases for their hibiscus collections.
 Hibiscus in Florida, USA |
Next we go to Florida, USA to visit Jonathan's garden. Jonathan grows many types of flowers, trees, and shrubs, and puts hibiscus in among his other plantings. He also grows hibiscus in pots on his patio and around his swimming pool. Jonathan has planned his southern Florida garden so that something is blooming all year long. The result is a showcase garden whose color and beauty stop traffic on his street!
 Hibiscus in India |
This is Dhanyatha's garden in Mysore, India. Dhanyatha is lucky enough to live very close to the equator, in the tropics where hibiscus originated. It is possible that many of the species of hibiscus found in India, and possibly in Dyanyatha's garden, are among the very earliest hybrids whose history is long lost. A walk through Dhanyatha's garden is like a walk through hibiscus history!
 Hibiscus in High Desert Arizona, USA |
The latest addition to our world gardens is Dave's garden in the high desert climate of southern Arizona, USA. Dave grows his hibiscus in pots and moves them between his garden, his house, and his greenhouse throughout the year, depending on weather conditions. He collects other plants along with hibiscus and blends his collections beautifully in all these places.
There are more worldwide gardens displayed in the Hibiscus Around the World section of our website, so if you have never visited this section before, take a look at it now!
And last but not least, don't forget to send us pictures of YOUR hibiscus garden! Try to take pictures of how your hibiscus are growing, along with other plants, in landscaping, inside a house or greenhouse, or however it is that you grow them. Email your photos to:
Don't be shy! We don't care if your photos aren't perfect or if your garden isn't perfect! We LOVE to get pictures of gardens - small, large, new, or old! Hibiscus beautify the world for all of us!
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Seedling of the Month...
'Arabian Princess'
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