Morris, Connecticut, USA

Lou's sunroom in summer

Lou's hibiscus garden is nestled in the woods of Connecticut where it's snowy and frosty for more than half the year. Lou lives on beautiful Bantam Lake ~ the largest natural lake in Connecticut. He has a sunroom built onto his house that makes a beautiful greenhouse. The sunroom is 10 feet square (3 meters square) and 8 feet high (2.4 meters high). It is glass with metal trim, and it sparkles in the sunlight. When it's snowy outside, the effect is dazzling, as you can see!

Lou's sunroom in winter ~ The lake is frozen and covered with snow.

Lou keeps his sunrooms a constant temperature of 70-75°F (21-24°C) and lets them go up to about 85°F (29°C) in summer sun. He uses a 60% shade cloth to prevent the heat from building up too much in the summer, along with good ventilation, and he has discovered that hibiscus grow beautifully under shade cloth. Lou's sunroom opens into the house with French doors that he opens when the house is cold, letting the sun-warmed greenhouse air warm his house.

Lou's hibiscus love his greenhouse!

This is Lou!

Hibiscus 'James Bond'

Lou adds moisture to the air in the greenhouse with a humidifier, which keep his hibiscus very, very happy. He sprays his hibiscus with water mid-morning each day to add even more moisture. You can see that his hibiscus love this treatment! Look at all his beauties!

Hibiscus 'Moonstruck'

Hibiscus 'Belle du Jour'

Hibiscus 'Rocket's Red Glare'

Hibiscus 'Valentine's Day'

This is Lou at work. He's a pilot by profession, as well as a renowned photographer and gardener.

Lou tries to put his hibiscus outside in the summer, but there are so many deer in his woodland part of Connecticut that too many of his hibiscus have become tasty deer treats. He once lost eight hibiscus in one night. The next morning there was nothing left of his beautiful hibiscus plants but the roots! Lou tried everything to keep the deer away from his hibiscus ~ water blasting, electronic squealers, and coyote urine, to name a few. Nothing worked. So now he keeps his hibiscus inside.

Lou's hibiscus outside in summer

'Electric Red' (top) & 'Electric Orange' (bottom)

Hibiscus 'Confection Perfection'

Hibiscus 'Illuminati'

Hibiscus 'Wild Grape' and 'Purple Magic'

Hibiscus 'Cosmic Gold'

If you would like to see more of Lou's beautiful photography, check out some of his websites!

Home Greenhouses

Lou Belloisy, Connecticut USA

Images by Louis

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