I live in Canada in a city in Ontario. I believe that I am in Zone 6. I have had Rose of Sharon at my home for a couple of decades. I have pink, purple and white with a red throat, but one day one of my seedlings turned out to have a white bloom with a white throat. My backyard has too much shade and root competition and the Rose of Sharons there have been slow to grow, but my pink one is mature. I also have three Rose of Sharons at the side of my house, located against my brick wall and close to my neighbor's property. It is there that they grow beautifully, with abundant blooms, beginning early. There is a huge difference between these Rose of Sharon and the ones in my backyard. I have determined that the Rose of Sharons require at least several hours of sun or more and a sheltered spot is ideal. I have been growing Rose of Sharon from seed and have found that the shrub will produce blooms in the third year of growth. But last year I decided to take two cuttings from my friend's double Rose of Sharon (hibiscus syriacus). It turned out to be an interesting experiment. Both cuttings "took" and I overwintered the cuttings in my house. Early spring they developed dust mites. When it was warm enough to put them outside in their pots, I did that. They were sprayed for the dust mites. I think the pesticide was too strong for the plant and the leaves curled up. But I proceeded to nuture them! This is what amazed me: the cuttings are quite small (maybe 10 inches high and one of them has buds on it! Now mind you the leaves still don't look that great, but I looking forward to seeing the bloom. My conclusion: much better to take cuttings. I am thinking that by next year the leaves should look "normal."

I wintersowed a true hibiscus two years ago, had very good germination, and flowers last summer. I was quite surprised and I am trying some seeds of the luna series this year. I had two bought ones in my gardens for two years, but one died last year. I think it had something to do with my soil becoming cat litter, if you know what I mean. About drying out, my hibiscus are planted in the ground so that's not a problem for me. However, if you could get hold of some 'Soil Moist' granules, they work great for keeping moisture in pots. They are a polymer which absorb large quantities of water - look like a gelatinous mass when fully wet, but it works very well. I got mine at a nursery out past Kanata - don't remember the name. But it should be available from some of the catalogues by now.

Hi, Has anyone successfully grown this shrub. I'd love to hear your opinion. I used to grow Blue Bird when I lived in a warmer zone and gave away lots of seedlings. I had success with one of these seedlings for about 8 years, over the sceptic tank, against a brick wall, but then had a cold winter that took it. I was heartbroken Does anyone have seeds of this to trade? Mary

Deserai, I have seen fuzzy vs. not on all varieties of Hibs. I do not think you can determine what the type will be by the seed. I have seeds from 'Athena', 'Minerva', 'Aphrodite', 'Blue Satin', and more. I do like Hibiscus Syriacus (Rose of Sharon) as they do very well in my location. Good luck with your new seeds. Ed