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Charlie
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« on: November 26, 2008, 06:28:00 AM » |
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Acapulco Gold almost fooled me when it bloomed for the very first time. I thought it was an extra bright Georgia's Pearl but the plant was among other new seedlings so I looked closer and found it to be a brand new hybrid. That was exciting because we had always enjoyed Georgia's Pearl but thought the colors were just a tad muted or muddy. In any case, Acapulco Gold has turned out to be a wonderful new variety that blooms a lot with big, very striking flowers in our conditions.
Acapulco Gold grows upright with better than average vigor and the color of the leaves are a nice, lush green. It has a tendency to grow tall quickly without branching so looks best if it is pinched and pruned while young. It does respond well to pinching and pruning, sending out side branches that fill out the appearance of the plant and eventually give more flowers than an unpinched plant.
For you hybridizers out there, Acapulco Gold does not set seed well but it does have hot pollen. It is a cross of Fifth Dimension x Georgia's Pearl.
Acapulco Gold was a best seller its first year out (2008) so we expect a lot of you will have photos or comments to make on it in the coming year. We think it's one of our best and easiest to grow, but would like to hear your experiences with it, too! Hibiscus dreamin' on such a winter's day,
Charlie |
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LGrove
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« Reply #1 on: December 24, 2008, 07:53:09 AM » |
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This is surely one of my favorites, partly for the amazing growth, I could hardly keep it potted during the summer, but the blooms are spectacular!! I was stunned from the first bloom and every one that opened demanded my attention! The blooms are huge and such bright, vivid colors, so beautiful. Definatly a stand out in my collection and I recommend it very highly!!
Lisa
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Lisa Grove
Sunny SoCal
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kris
Posts: 72
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« Reply #2 on: January 26, 2009, 05:41:39 PM » |
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still waiting on blooms for this cutting, cant wait till it does  |
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kris
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« Reply #3 on: May 18, 2009, 10:39:20 PM » |
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I pruned the 4' Acapulco gold I got last fall early this spring and all I have to say is wow. From the two branches I now have 6. For me here is the real kicker, each of the new branches already have three plus buds forming! I haven't seen the flowers yet, but already this small plant is shaping up to be very prolific. In fact, the only variety I have of this size that has as many buds is blue ballerina! I just wanted to share some preliminary experience with is cv.
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Charlie
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« Reply #4 on: May 20, 2009, 05:05:13 AM » |
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Excellent results! Kris, what state do you live in?
Charlie
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kris
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« Reply #5 on: May 20, 2009, 03:20:06 PM » |
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Hi Charlie, I am currently in CA, more specifically the LA area |
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Charlie
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« Reply #6 on: May 21, 2009, 06:09:14 AM » |
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Similar to here, then. Places along the Gulf Coast (TX, Louisiana, FL) have much warmer nights then we do here in CA. Hybridizers in FL worry about making crosses when the nights do not go below 70F which is common. I'm just happy when our nights get above 60F! Warm nights makes a difference to the plants and flowers. They grow faster, get better responses to pruning, and the flowers reach their maximum size when the nights are warm. OTOH, places like northern Ca with warm sunny days and cool to cold summer nights still get a lot of flowers and the colors are usually intense. I recently shipped to Alaska and am very curious how the hibiscus react to 20 hours or more of summer daylight!
Charlie
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kris
Posts: 72
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« Reply #7 on: May 21, 2009, 09:21:59 AM » |
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That would be interesting to see. It is really fascinating the effect care and weather has on color and size of the bloom. Now that the weather has warmed up my gator pride has very ruffled flowers and the colors are yellow and lavender. Early in the spring the flowers were orange and deep purple! Also my Belle du Jour has had small white flowers with a bright pink eye, but I am sure that this is due to being repotted two weeks ago. I am curious to see how the flowers will look when I move to Denver in the Fall, with the high altitude and more solar radiation I wonder if they need as much sun exposure as they do here at sea level.
-Kris
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Charlie
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« Reply #8 on: May 22, 2009, 06:36:38 AM » |
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Kris, I meant to ask you more about that Belle de Jour. Your description makes me wonder if you have a mislabeled plant. Did you happen to take a photo of the smaller, "white" flowers? I can understand a smaller than normal flower but not a white one after transplanting. I couple of years ago some unknown small white flowered plant made it into our production by accident and I wonder if this is that one. I thought I had gotten rid of all of these but maybe not. You really should have the real deal - right now the 6 inch pots of Belle du Jour have been putting on a spectacular display, multiple huge flowers. If you don't have a photo of the white flower maybe you can take a photo of the plant and send it to me or post it here. I can sometimes tell from leaves and growth habit which variety it is and would like to confirm that you really have Belle.
Charlie
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Darkhorse
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« Reply #9 on: July 06, 2009, 10:49:15 AM » |
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My AG bloomed for the first time today. I was blown away by the richness of the color! The photos on the site just can't capture the beauty of this cv. The flower was huge, probably 8" across. It has become my new favorite hib!!
As far as its growth, it grows faster than any of my other cvs. It does seem to want to grow straight up without branching, but mine responded very well to pruning, creating several new branches on each stem when it was pruned about 8" up from the soil.
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"They who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night." -Edgar Allan Poe
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Charlie
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« Reply #10 on: July 06, 2009, 02:59:21 PM » |
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I couldn't agree more. I am still shocked when Acapulco Gold opens new flowers! The relatively small amount of fade in the sun is also a trait I hope to find more of in the future. Thanks for sharing this bloom with us!
Charlie
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helixturnhelix
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« Reply #11 on: July 06, 2009, 10:31:21 PM » |
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Wow Jordan! That is a great bloom!
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Darkhorse
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« Reply #12 on: July 07, 2009, 11:01:23 AM » |
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Thanks! Another bud popped open today on AG, and it looks like #3 will open tomorrow. The flowers are so huge there's barely any room on the plant! I can't wait until this one gets to be a couple years old... it's going to be outstanding. |
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"They who dream by day are cognizant of many things which escape those who dream only by night." -Edgar Allan Poe
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Charlie
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« Reply #13 on: July 08, 2009, 04:01:25 PM » |
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I'm glad your AG is doing well. It does bloom well - even my winter beat up garden plant of it showed off 3 blooms on Monday. I'll try to remember to show this same plant in October after it's been growing all summer.
Charlie
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helixturnhelix
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« Reply #14 on: July 10, 2009, 10:24:06 AM » |
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I'll join the club |
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