Blue Ballerina called something else ?

Blue Ballerina is a special variety in that it does not contain any red in the blue. In other words it is not purple as are so many of the "blue" hibiscus out there. Hitchcock is a purple, I believe. I like purple in hibiscus flowers but getting a blue that does not have shades of red in it that turn it purple is far more rare and for that reason interesting to me. Also show people like Blue Ballerina because it is a true mini and can be entered in shows as a mini, while Hitchcock is too big to be a mini and too small to be an impressive regular single at shows.

As long as I'm on the subject of comparing flowers, it is wise to be aware of the enhanced presentation of flower photos on the internet. One can be very disappointed after acquiring a flower on the basis of these "show off" photos that are not really a true representation of the flowers.

In addition to blooms that are software enhanced before showing them online, there are a great many fading blooms making their way into the hibiscus population these days. These are flowers that when first opened, and not exposed to a significant amount of sun, appear quite dramatic in color. However, a few hours later that same bloom has lost all its spectacular color and become quite drab. A few blooms change color to a second, and still pleasing shade of color, such as 5th Dimension, but those are the exceptions and what I see being shown so often on the internet these days is more wishful thinking than reality.

At the HVH store we try to show multiple photos of all cvs we offer, showing them freshly opened and after 2 or 3 days as well as showing them in different weather conditions which also affects color. I think that is the only fair way to show blooms online but you will not find that this is a popular approach among those who show off their blooms primarily in online photos.

One of these days I may put up a page showing a bunch of examples of the wishful thinking photos alongside the real blooms of such varieties at midday a few hours after they open. It would be quite an eye opener to many.

One of my goals when hybridizing is to come up with and select for further propagation only those blooms that are colorfast and that do not need any software enhancements to make them look special. We have a lot of cvs that fit that definition now and there will be more in the future.

Thanks for stimulating this train of thought.

Charlie