Call me crazy, but I'm looking at three Rose-of-Sharon to bonsai. Remember, many grow flowering trees and shrubs, not to conform with typical bonsai rules but to make a wide visual experience of "wall-of'flowers". If you can get the shrub to survive in a bonsai pot, prune and train it to be wide from the front and very narrow from the side, it just might be worth the experimentation. OR, just plant it along a fence and prune it the same way and get a yard shrub that makes a great flowering statement without taking up so much space. Jay

Ah yes, the actual subject of this thread. The Hibiscus species in question is H. sabdariffa (just click on the link in the first post for the low quality study that mentions this). As to apollog's feeling compelled to indulge in name-calling because I "distort" discussion in threads, the history of our interactions is marked by his misquoting and mischaracterizing what I've said. The discussion on "alkaline water" in particular features the usual apollogian tactics of going off into tangents, failing to address the multiple expert opinions I cite (pretending that I alone hold such opinions) and above all, volleying insults. Somehow I manage to handle these distortions of debate calmly without indulging in personal attacks. I am able to do this because I have evidence on my side and don't need to distract people by assaulting the character of those with whom I disagree. "Ad hominem abusive: Ad hominem abusive (also called argumentum ad personam) usually and most notoriously involves insulting or belittling one's opponent, but can also involve pointing out factual but ostensibly damning character flaws or actions which are irrelevant to the opponent's argument. This tactic is logically fallacious because insults and even true negative facts about the opponent's personal character have nothing to do with the logical merits of the opponent's arguments or assertions. This tactic is frequently employed as a propaganda tool among politicians who are attempting to influence the voter base in their favor through an appeal to emotion rather than by logical means, especially when their own position is logically weaker than their opponent's. Examples: "You can't believe Jack when he says God exists because he doesn't even have a job." "Candidate Jane Jones's proposal X is ridiculous. She was caught cheating on her taxes in 2003." Employing fallacious tactics like ad hominems and strawmen (creating arguments your opponent has not made which are easier to tear down than what he actually said) are excellent evidence of how barren one's position really is. Amen.

Not saying you can't make tea from the other hibiscus but the H sabdariffa is the one that red zinger tea and the mexican drink flor de jamaica are made from. They have a very fleshy calyx that is very unlike the other hibiscus and that is what you make the tea from. I used to live in Hawaii and grew sabdariffa easily. Would preserve the calyces in syrup. They are spectacularly beautiful plunked into a champagne glass with champagne poured over them (makes the champagne pink and slightly fruity/tannic with bubbles rising from the red "flower") Tried to grow here and even with starting indoors early, the plant did not bear flowers before the frost. I think you will need a greenhouse to grow in this zone. The plants get pretty big (24-36" even in a 2 gallon pot) and need a lot of light so hard to grow indoors (tried to bring it in before frost and keep it alive but no success)

I've made tea from the blooms of the Hibiscus syriacus I have in my gardens...the Mt. Sinai variety makes a rich tea (using just 1 or 2 blooms in a saucepan, with maybe 3 cups of water) which i then cut down about 4 to 1 with water. I've found it makes a wonderful, naturally sweet drink when put thru my iced tea maker. I'll often add in some lemonbalm (as a treatment for my herpes) and this summer I plan to play with borage and a few other herbs to see what other combinations I can come up with. I'd love to post a picture of my hisbiscus...but can't figure out how. :) -jaz