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August is truly one of my favorite months, since the Greenhouse is closed I have some time to sit back and really enjoy my garden. By now most of the weeding and other work is done and all I have to do is some harvesting, and the cleaning up of perennials that have finished blooming. Easy work! So of course I can take it easy and enjoy the flowers.
The Hardy Hibiscus in my garden comes into its own the end of July and into August. It is truly spectacular and is an all time favorite with many people. Visitors to my garden are impressed, but since this shrub is so easy to grow I can hardly take too much credit.
Hardy Hibiscus have huge but delicate looking flowers, they almost look like they have been fashioned out of crepe paper. Depending on the variety the flowers can be 3-4 in across or 8-12 in. Each blossom lasts only one day but they are so prolific that they can produce more than 100 blooms in a season. One of the last shrubs to leaf out in spring, they make up for it by blooming right up until frost.
Native to marsh areas of North America, they sometimes go by the common name mallow, and are close relatives of the not so hardy 'Rose of Sharon' shrub, Hibiscus syriacus. They are of the Malvaceae family that includes hollyhocks and malva.
Very hardy they re zone 4 and with extra protection will withstand zone 3. Fast growing, they come in varieties that range in size from 2-8 feet tall and 2-6 feet wide. They are not overly prone to insect problems, but need a fair bit of water to get established. Mulching over winter is a good idea for moisture retention.
Original varieties came in pink white and red but with the new cultivars you can purchase nearly every color and type, including some with dark centers, bi-colors, dark veined varieties, ruffled edges and more. Old Yella has yellow buds that open to creamy white. Kopper King has blooms of 10-12 in that are white with a dark red eye, and Lord Baltimore's blossoms are 10-12 in; ruffled, with a crimson red flower, just to mention a few.
An extremely easy shrub to grow, it creates a real showpiece in the garden.
Lindi Karmason for Lake Country Gardens |
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