Scarlet Beauty

[farmer d]

There are so many red CVs to choose from that I was really nervous about how to decide.  For me it came down to what originally inspired me into becoming a hibiscus enthusiast which was all the pretty blooms we would see on vacation in Hawaii of which many are just a luscious all red.

That luscious, thick almost wet looking red is what I was after and upon perusing the HVH catalog many times I thought Scarlet Beauty would have that satiny red color catching your eye from across the yard look.

I think that best sums up this CV along with the fact that it blooms in impeccable form consistently, grows very easily and as of year two it likes to bloom a lot.  The plant loves the heat but since the blooms are red they do fade during the first day on those hot days.  

Oh yeah, it tends to have a hint of an eye as the center sometimes fades a little towards a faint pinkish white - really pretty.  And the color always has that wet and waxy look to it which I love a lot.

If you're looking for a great all red eye catching bloom where the color jumps out from across the yard this is definitely the one.  I am always surprised (along with Rise & Shine which I will be covering soon) how these CVs end up staying available so long in the store.  



















Farmer D

[Halibut]

We also love Scarlet Beauty. We also like Really Red but easily favor SB over the later. One other CV that is close in color and for our tastes one that we favor over both of the above is Passion Play.

One other fun comparison is Saffron vs. Electric Orange. For us EO is an easy winner. I guess it all depends on temperature, sun, fertilization, etc.

Jean and I would love to come and see your Garden sometime since you're so close to us.

Hal & Jean

[topshelf12]

  I have scarlet beauty and love it. Farmer D you were talking about hibs. with a true red color. I was thinking about Heart Fire or Legendary heart. I know you have a lot of hibs. Do you have the two that I mentioned?
thanks
Norm

[farmer d]

Great posts from both of you Norm, Hal & Jean.  It is always exciting to compare and get more familiar with the different CVs.  There are so many I don't know if I can ever get them all ordered the way I want in my mind.

I love Passion Play and if you're a magenta fan that is magenta heaven.  Speaking of magenta colors I have seen recently a few amazing Tahitian CVs that are in of the violet realm (neighbor to magenta I guess).  Though the pics vs what you get can differ a lot.

Legendary Heart is a beauty and I'm always very interested in anything with Living Legend genes.  The bush is amazing as I am watching my baby LL become bigger so quickly.  Heart Fire is really nice too, that to me is such a red red.  Just judging off of the pics here, one thing I really like about SB is that the petals get absolutely huge towards the tips so that the flower has a very symmetrical circular look to it.  Almost like the ends square off a little to make a nice round flower shape instead of the typical rounded petals that give flowers a more in and out border - if this makes sense?

Bottom line for me it makes the blooms look even bigger than they are (which is quite big already) and I love how the red fades into a pinkish lavender.  Oh - almost forgot SB is the only all red bloom I have besides Black Dream.

Farmer D

[farmer d]

I just had to throw on here a couple of pics of Scarlet Beauty at 10"+.  WOW!

Farmer D