mdr944 - When I bring mine in - usually around Columbus day, I stick it by my balcony sliding glass doors where there is a plain floor-ceiling glass that is part of the door. In winter, I go no sunlight there (I face NE), but it is somewhat "bright". But more importantly, I have a table lamp with a 200W reading light near it, so it gets artificial light during the day. I reduce the watering a bit and cease fertilizing. It may have a bit of a shock and will yellow and drop some leaves but it recovers and will often give me a couple blooms in February or March. I understand that some people place them in a cool dark spot, but then since they are evergreen, that tends to really stress them and they will drop leaves, but will resprout later when brought into warmer brighter conditions. But when that happens, they are very late to bloom since they bloom on new growth. However if you can keep it near a bright reading lamp, then it can hang on through the winter and can bloom too! The main thing to look out for if you keep it in a bright or sunny warm spot inside, is to keep humidity around it. These can easily get spider mites if the air is too dry around the leaves, so either sitting it in a big pebble tray filled with water or using a humidifier (I keep a couple going in winter), will help. I was trying to see if I had a fuller picture of it from last year when it was outside but I did manage to find one not long after I brought it in when it was still blooming: From an older picture of it when it is outside when it is blooming, it looks like this (my hummingbirds like perching on it and will peck at the flowers too): Believe it or not, this was from Home Depot in a 2 gallon pot with 4 plants in it. It has slowly died back to two thick ones over the years, but I have actually never pruned it to shape (which I really really should do...LOL). I just prune off any dead or broken branches. It is in a 14" pot, which was about the biggest that I felt that I could lift (I have since potted a large coffee plant in a 16" pot, but that is a bit easier to lift since it is one central trunk that sits straight up).

Have you tried Isotox spray? (acetaphate).It seemed to help my problem spots in the greenhouse, and it's got some systemic action. Ornamentals only. But I think what you're doing is right, just rotate your sprays more, in other words use one that works via a different mode every few times. It sounds like maybe they are resistant to some of your chemicals or you're not getting good enough coverage with your spray, or check your measurements too. If you're using it too weak it won't be as effective and then you've exposed your bugs to it and they will be resistant. So throwing a properly mixed new spray in there with really good complete spray coverage might be just the ticket you're looking for. I like to also keep a small hand sprayer loaded up with insecticidal soap and carry it with me in the greenhouse and blast any I see in between sprays. As far as I know, soap and horticultural oil are two things that bugs can't get resistant to, but the oil and soap might burn the leaves of your plants. Of course, it's not season yet anyway so that really wouldn't matter all that much. They would grow back. You can also go out there with a vacuum cleaner and rustle the leaves and suck up the adults which puts a surprizing dent in the population too in between sprays. It will eventually work, but it just won't be that instant fix you're looking for. Whitefly predators might not be the answer right now. Most of them need 30-45 days for the chemical residues to wear off before you can put them out successfully. But be sure and check on that too because that would be the safest way. Neem oil seems to be very popular on Gardenweb. But all it ever did for me was clog my sprayer. (I know there will be backlash for that!) Sticky cards are really just for monitoring, and they won't take out a population by themselves. Here is a link that might be useful: spray rotation guidelines

I think that in most cases the reasons for 1or 2 size up rlue of thumb is based more on watering issues than too much grwoth without blooms ( I won't swear by it but I have done so many other plants that bloom in over sized pots and had not loss of blooming action:). I continue to here this about bougainvillas but have never heard it said about hibiscus. Hibiscus do resent wet feet but do love to be moist and not water stressed. Aborted blooms are frequent in these situations. I don't give my containered hibiscus all day sun in the summer because drying and bloom aborting happens too much at 100 degrees in July and August. I am potting up some one gallon hibs today and doing them in 3 to 4 gallon size plastic containers and then will double pot them in some cool mexican pottery for cooling, weight and display reasons. I look to grow my hibs in a pot size that allows for me working full time and not wanting to set up auto drips to keep them moist in summer and still small enough to not take too much room in the house for the winter. It can get to be a jungle in my living room as is and I am trying to not have so much clutter (plants good clutter:) over the winter months. SO this is my style to accomplish my goals and still have the hibs happy. All container growing is a balance of what the plant and person tending to it wants out of the relationship and making reasonable compromises to attain those goals. Sounds a little like marriage doesn't it and maybe it is more than we realize. I love my plants and I love my wife and I seek that compromise that keeps them both happy and me not feeling like growing them is a chore but a joy to behold just like I feel about life with my wife. Hope some of this makes sense and helps you decide what you will do. One more thought is that windy and conditions are tough on blooms and we are back to wateing and keeping your hibs happy so whatever you feel will do this is what you should do. Better a few less but spectacular blooms than more blooms but constantly seeing them shredded before you really enjoy them. Happy Growing whatever you decide. David

I am on Day 20 of the Giant Whiteflies War. Untold numbers of Giant Whiteflies have died under my thumb. I have removed infected leaves by hand, folding them in half, literally grinding them to powder. I have a stool and sit, like a dark samurai in a Kurosawa film, looking up at the leaves of my hibiscus. This plant lives under our lemon tree, outside. I was reluctant to use some sort of spray. I was very close in the early days. Initial tactics included blasting colonies with water from the hose. After this, I removed the egregious areas, trimming back nearly all leaves on half the bush. And still they came, but slower. For 6 straight days I sat on my stool, removing leaves. Hiding leaves in the trash. Blasting with water the trash daily, as adults swarmed around it, threatening their next victim. I began to fear I was aiding the Giant Whiteflies, selectively breeding Whiteflies with quicker resources. Whiteflies that escaped before their execution. Surely they would breed, surely I would loose more leaves. I adapted my hunt. I called on the Lemon Tree for help. Lemon Tree would donate a sturdy leaf to the fight. Using this leaf, I would first CRUSH the Giant Whitefly colony in its place. Only then, in the wake of the white powdered mess, would I remove the leaf. Only the best escaped. And I hunted their children. In a few short days, I was down to only a few leaves of war as I hunted in the evening. I began to think like a Giant Whitefly. Northern California evenings are cool, slowing my prey. Every leaf was suspect of harboring rebel factions. If a colony turned up, it had neighbors. Sometimes I killed children. Mere teenagers, and younger, died. Spotted leaves have returned green. Blossoms have unfurled. The Hibiscus claims victory. Even the Meyer has bloomed, heralding sweeter days before the Giant Whiteflies came. And still I hunt. Today, it was only four. Some days it's none. I don't think I will ever stop hunting.