Hi, Hope you can help with my hibiscus issue. I live in north east Ontario . I have a hibiscus grown from seed, it was started about 3 years ago. It goes dormant for the winter and produces leaves in the spring. My issue is, it is only about 7 ins. tall with no branches produced, only green leaves at the very top. The leaves are very healthy looking. It is kept indoors all winter as it's still in a pot and I put it outdoors in the summer with bright but not harsh light. I believe it is a hardy hibiscus. Any help would be great! Thanks
It might help people who could help if you could reply with photos. See Attach photos and files | UBC Botanical Garden Forums.
Hope you can see the picture. Thanks for the direction Also...I was going to re-pot it to see if that makes a difference Thanks!
From your photo it appears to be a Hibiscus syriacus aka Rose of Sharon. If I'm correct on my id it should be planted out in the garden. It does not need to be in a pot and brought indoors for the winter.It is fully hardy in Ontario. Just be sure to plant it in a spot with some room because they can become quite large if left unchecked although they are easily pruned and trained to a shape you like. I grow a number of them and they are, in my opinion, a fantastic shrub/small tree for the garden. Good luck. rose-sharon
Thanks for the advice and description. Can it be planted outdoors being this small? My main concern was the lack of branches growing. I get about 4ft if snow and temps are on average -10 to -30 during winter. It's a family heirloom and I'd hate to lose it. It's the only one I have. Also, the plant it came from didn't have thorns, is it still considered 'Rose of Sharon'? Thanks again!
IF you plant it out, it will naturally lose all its leaves in the winter, and possibly not leaf out until late May or June, so you have to not freak out in April. But I would be concerned about its being hardy in northern Ontario, as that plant is listed as hardiness zone 5-8 USDA. I don't know how your area translates to that, though @DerekK says it should be fully hardy in Ontario. I see some areas that are colder than zone 5 in the Canadian system: Ontario Interactive Plant Hardiness Zone Map (plantmaps.com). I don't know enough to say any more about this. Common names are often not particularly appropriate. In this case, its common or non-botanical name seems to have come from its similar appearance to a rose, but it is not a rose, not in the rose family at all. I assume that's what is behind your question about thorns. Hibiscus syriacus do not have thorns; for that matter, there are also real roses that do not have thorns.
It won’t likely produce too many branches in that small spot. At the very least it needs to be potted up to a much larger pot. If you do that you could treat it as you have so far and then plant it out in the fall. Rose of Sharon is a common name that might apply to other plants but in North America it most commonly refers to Hibiscus syriacus. The link below gives good detail on growing conditions and requirements for Ontario. https://www.po.*************growers.com/our-products/1092/hibiscus/syriacus
It is hardy to -10 to -30c so shouldn’t be an issue but as with any plant some winter protection could be used. Especially in the first winter.
