When I went to check on her a few days ago, she was gone! The web is gone and so is the spider! Acording to what I have read she was supposed to lay her egg sac and then as the weather cools she becomes frail and usually dies about the time of the first hard frost. We did have some cool nights last week, cool enough to put blankets back on the bed, but we certainly have not had our first hard frost! That should happen sometime between 9/24 to 10/6. I know that the chances of her coming inside are slim; but I couldn't help but check all corners of the inside of the house the last few days! I can't see an egg sac, but she did build her web right next to a large Clematis montana Rubens, so lots of leaf coverage to hide in. As much as I want to tidy this bed and start building a cold-frame; I think I will work on other areas of the garden and wait until long after the first frost, so I know that spider is history! Kat

If they are forming new leaves there is definete hope. You may also want to scrap down well about two inches of the topsoil get rid of it and recap with new soil. At first becuz of shipping and new locations and transplanting any plant will undergo some shock which ALSO may have contributed to your leaf drop along with the insects. I never count a plant "in" so to speak till three years AFTER i get it in the ground. Thats any plant..one year to adjust..one year to lay in some new root system and the third year the charm, hopefully. Hibiscus are beautiful but parasites seem to be a big problem, that and under watering them with folks in warmer or humid climates. Always remove any dead fallen leaves also. I think you will be fine. New growth is always a good sign. Good luck

Yes, Argiope aurantia, one of the spectacular orb weaving spiders. If you want to see her in action, find a live cricket or similar, nothing too big, and toss it into the web.

One of the many members of the largest group of spiders, Araneus, perhaps Araneus marmoreus. Check out the top image in this linked website. That's the top of her, by the way, not the underside.