Canadian CVs

[helixturnhelix]

Hi Charlie,

I was hoping you could write a bit about any Canadian CVs you know of.  I was at a garden center today and they have a bunch of Canadian hibiscus (grown in Can) of varieties I have never heard of before.  One was called Joanne another Karen, they were compact in growth and had fancy flowers like the varieties from HVH.  I am thinking about getting one and start crossing it with some of your CVs just like your use of P's Purple. 

[Charlie]

Chris, I don't know too much about Canadian varieties. Several years ago I was contacted by a commercial grower in western Canada who had imported hibiscus from a grower in Florida. That grower was charging the Canadian grower a royalty to propagate the imported varieties, including some that were not his own hybrids although the Canadian grower did not realize it before we talked. That's a somewhat outrageous practice so the Canadian grower decided to try to hybridize his own varieties. Last I heard from him he did have some varieties that worked well in his climate and I wouldn't be surprised if he continued to hybridize in the years since. He did not have a huge operation so I think distribution is limited to Canada and some northern US garden centers.

I would be interested in seeing these and also bringing any good genetics he has into our program. If you get some photos of the flowers and/or plants please post them. I'm pretty sure I can find the email correspondence I had with this grower and might get back in touch with him to see what he's been up to lately.

Charlie

[blupit007]

What does Canadian variety mean?  Is it still a tropical?  Or more of a hardy?  Speaking of which, Chris, now that you are in the north, do you want some of my Hardy Lord Baltimore Seeds that I have a billion of?  I am interested in this Canadian type...

[Charlie]

Nope, these are still the tropical hibiscus same as we offer in the store. It only means that a commercial grower who is in Canada hybridized a line of tropical hibiscus inside his greenhouse that suit his commercial needs and the climate in his area. His customers will still have to keep them indoors except for a few months in summer. As I recall one of his criteria was that they be able to bud up well in the lower light levels they would experience much of the time there.

Charlie

[helixturnhelix]

I wasnt able to find any that were blooming today, but overall they are very compact in growth dark green leaves and look to bloom in the same area that phalaenopsis orchids are.  I found the grower Klahanie Greenhouses, and the flowers look to be very pretty of the varieties that I saw on the website, they look to be simple colors, and some have large size and form.  The one i did see when I did not have my camera was called "judy" and was a bright red double with lots of ruffling like HS.

On another note, it looks like several of the plants are starting to show a little bit of new growth.  They are going to be growing alot slower here because of the cool weather, but it looks like there will be sunny skies in the forecast!  I am going to bring them inside once night temps start dipping into the 40s but for now they are getting lots of rainwater and looks like sun this week

[Charlie]

Chris, I'm glad to hear that your plants survived the trip and are starting to put out new growth in Seattle. They will like the indoor warmth once they are moved inside. Hopefully there will be enough light. Could be a long wait for blooms though. Hibiscus make pretty green house plants when not blooming. A little consolation, right?

Charlie

[helixturnhelix]

I finally decided to grab a Canadian CV at a garden center when I was in Seattle last week.  The variety is unmarked, but like European Varieties, should require less sun to grow and flower.  I just grabbed one that didn't have any open flowers, but the buds looked like it would be a dark color.  This is the first bloom from that plant and I am amazed at how huge the flower is, it is easily 12 inches across, which is surprising since most CVs have smaller blooms indoors.  I also included one picture with my hand in it for reference.  I am not a small dude (6'4, 190) and this bloom dwarfs my hand.

I have some moonstruck pollen that I will try on the next bloom, this one got Heartbreak hotel pollen. 
   

[Charlie]

You really should try to measure it with a ruler, Chris. I don't know of any credible reports of tropical hibiscus flowers more than 11 inches to date. It's a shame they don't name them and give cross info, etc as it would be interesting to know the heritage of this one. No doubt it could be traced back to known cvs if the info was available.

Charlie

[helixturnhelix]

I will measure it tomorrow Charlie,  it is the largest bloom on a hibiscus I have seen to date.  I am eager to see if it sets seed. 

[Charlie]

It would be good to document it with a photo of bloom and ruler if it does reach 12". I might need a piece of wood of that one! I did see a red double from Canada that was huge during cool weather but shrank to normal size as soon as it warmed up. Pretty impressive when it was full sized.

BTW, this isn't one of the cold hardy Hibiscus moscheutos or rose mallow types of hibiscus, is it? Like "Lord Baltimore". Those so-called "dinner plate" hibiscus reportedly can reach 12 inches but of course they die back to the roots in winter.

Charlie

[helixturnhelix]

Today the bloom measures 10.5 inches, but it was closing and I had to push it open to get the picture.  It was probably about 11 inches yesterday, when fully opened.  I guess not quite 12 inches, but still impressive!

This is 100% H. rosa sinensis, it is four plants in one pot.  I should split it, but do not want to disturb it when I am trying to get it to set seed   I will split it up later this summer after I get some seeds, I will let you know when I do. 

[Charlie]

Well,, that's still a pretty big hibiscus and reminds us just how large a 10 inch bloom actually is.

Hibiscus grown as multiple plants per pot are often treated with Cycocel or other PGR (plant growth regulating) type chemicals. These can temporarily prevent seed setting so if that happens to your crosses with this variety, don't give up right away. The pollen should be good even with treated plants.

Charlie

[helixturnhelix]

Yeah Charlie, I had a feeling it was treated with some sort of PGR, I hope it doesn't interfere with setting seed, but we will find out soon.  At anyrate, I am looking forward to seeing what traits are passed to the seedlings.