Tried and True

[Ernest]

I was recently reviewing Charlie's "Tried and True" category and it occurred to me that I could add a number of other cvs that fulfill most, if not all, of the criteria listed. These are all plants grown in the ground year round here in southern California. It would be interesting to hear other people's experiences in different parts of the country (or world) and see if there are other differences with those grown in pots. On this list only Simple Pleasures and Living Legend have been in the ground for 4-5 years. All other have been planted for a little less than a year so this evaluation may change with time.

Acapulco Gold
Cherry Glow
Flickering Flame
Cindy's heart
Simple Pleasures
Living Legend
Magic Crystal
Old Spice
Sizzle
Secret Heart
Silver Dragon
Valentine's Day
 Daisy Mae
Prosperity
Hollywood Starlet
Inner Compass

Erny

[jpiper82]

Hi Erny, John Piper here, I believe you are correct in nominating all those  Hibiscus for tried and true, however I think that Charlie, has to think about his total market area, and what he can universally recommend for his customer base across North America, along with the skill level of the customer base. Until he has enough data from all sources, "ain't goina happen".
On the other hand my nomination would be "Bridal Path"
Best Regards, John

[davidwood]

Good point John, not only do I agree with your nomination for Bridal Path but think its the best of the best, ticks every box and more.

[Charlie]

Thanks for this feedback, guys. I hope we'll get more comments on this over time.

Generally, the Tried and True are those that work well for us in our conditions, but with more feedback from other areas I am more than willing to include some that might not have seemed a sure bet here - such as Bridal Path.

Charlie

[Ernest]

John and David, thanks for the feedback. Of course the whole point in starting this topic is to get feedback on which cvs do well in different environments. The only way to get this information is to ask people to report on their results in all the different geographic areas and climates. The purpose here is to help those who are new to the hibiscus world to start out with some cvs that will grow well in their particular area so as to stimulate their interest and enhance their enjoyment of these beautiful flowers. This will require input from many places and many sources and this is intended merely to start the process.
Erny

[farmer d]

Erny thanks for starting this topic - I hope a lot of others will chime in with which cvs have done really well for them.  I don't think I can add too many more to your list plus we're in the same area too but those all sound like strong candidates.  I hope that some day soon Charlie can see first hand which are doing best here...

What I really like about Erny's set up is the large area of hibiscus planted in the same conditions in the same general area which works well in equally comparing cvs against each other.  My set up here every planter is like a different growing zone.

I am surprised to hear Bridal Path mentioned as my experience has not been so easy with my BP compared to other Tried & Trues I have planted right next to it since 2010 though I did move it once so that could be a factor.  I have three Bridal Paths now (that's how much I love the bloom) with one in a pot so over time maybe I'll have more feedback soon though the other two are grafted.

A couple of others I have found to be exceptional so far here in So Cal are:

Miss Congeniality
Scarlet Beauty
True Love

Farmer D

[Doll]

The cultivars that have done the best for me are

Cindy's Heart
High Voltage
Acapulco Gold
Rainbow Sherbet
Cosmic Gold
Hot Pepper
Apricot Cookie
Wild Grape
White Wings

[Ernest]

Very interesting discussion. Based on the comments thus far it may be reasonable to infer that Bridal Path thrives in relatively hot and humid environments such as Viet Nam and the gulf coast of the US as opposed to the more arid climate in southern California. This could be useful information to someone living in such an area who wanted a nice specimen plant for his or her garden.
The 800 lb gorilla of my garden is Simple Pleasures. It's hard for me to get a good picture of it because the plumerias planted in front of it don't permit a good frontal shot. It is about 6' tall and densely branched. I have to keep cutting it back to keep it from blocking the window where it is planted.

Erny

[davidwood]

I am surprised to hear Bridal Path mentioned as my experience has not been so easy with my BP compared to other Tried & Trues I have planted right next to it since 2010 though I did move it once so that could be a factor.  I have three Bridal Paths now (that's how much I love the bloom) with one in a pot so over time maybe I'll have more feedback soon though

[/quote]
Darren one thing  about Bridal Path for me is how different to other cv’s I have in the way it drinks water, it can go from a heavy water user to a complete shutdown, it does not seem to matter how hot it is and there is no rhyme nor reason why and when it does it but it does. For sure I think to grow it successfully you would need a water meter so as to only give it water when it wants it.

[farmer d]

David your previous bloom pics of her are some of the most beautiful flowers I have seen so far and a big reason why I have several BP plants.

It is great to hear the specific issues you have experienced with Bridal Path.  What i find very interesting is your mention of how it seems to shut off for no apparent reason.  My experience has been that BP shows issues first before others hibs do (I know Charlie has posted the same experience with growing her as well a few years back) like yellowing leaves and pest issues.  I guess it is more sensitive to changes in environmental conditions with the biggest factor being how much water it gets. 

I have come to see that BP loves it really hot and humid which we don't get that much in So Cal where when it gets hot it usually is rather dry.  Last summer we had an unusual 2 month stretch of hot and humid weather and my BP did phenomenally well.  By far the best it has ever done with tons of new leaves and branches.  I was able to water it like all my other hibiscus which was a first in three years.  I was curious if this would be a permanent bump up in performance or just conditional from the unusual weather so I continued to water her like all my other hibiscus and sure enough all the leaves started to yellow and drop off along with significant decrease in bud production while most of my hibiscus around her that are Tried and True were fine with the same water levels even after the weather returned to normal for our region. 

The one I have in a pot on my porch has been similar with not wanting much water and doing better in hot conditions.  I've noticed it just doesn't like inconsistency with the weather.  I have another planted in my backyard in mostly shade during spring and summer so let's see how it fares though so far so good....again these last two are grafted so not sure how much of a difference that could make.

Great stuff David - I hope we can all continue sharing and problem solving!

[davidwood]

Darren its certainly hot and humid here haha, sometimes when its bad it feels like a sauna.

You mention problem solving together, well Darren here is one; how many cv's can I fit in a large suitcase? I am off to Cambodia again beginning of July and I want to pack it full, so far I have 3x6inch and 10x4inch, what do you or others think, enough or can I squeeze in more. I certainly need as many as I can get after all last years disasters, its also maybe my last chance to do this so I dont want to be coming back with empty space.

[stplong]

For some of the Northern growers, I just wanted to add some that have done good up here in Ohio.

Creme De Cacao (have had for about 6 yrs and has always done great).
Black Jack
Cranberry Muffin (even though the bush grows great up here, I have had it for about 5 years and not even 1 bloom, but it's a beautiful bush)


Patrick

[davidwood]

 Cranberry Muffin (even though the bush grows great up here, I have had it for about 5 years and not even 1 bloom, but it's a beautiful bush)


Patrick
[/quote]
Strange Patrick, same as you had mine 5 years and have never been able to make it into a great bush, but I do get lots of nice blooms.

[davidwood]

That's absolutely brilliant Darren, the only real snag with it is I dont want to take them out of there pots, to me that's of paramount importance as I have done more long term damage to my Hibs by re-potting to soon [especially with the 4inch] than anything else.
Not sure how Charlie will send them, maybe 2 or 3 boxes, in an ideal world I could place the boxes straight into the suitcase, but if 3 wont fit then I will maybe place 2 boxes in and then wrap whats in the third box around the 2 boxes.

[Ernest]

I propose a new name for David--"Hibiscus Biker".

Erny