When to transplant ??

My first and only Hibiscus has started blooming. It has been in a pot since last year. and made it good through the winter. Right now its full of blooms,but some of the leaves are curling and turning yellow..I have wanted to take it out of the pot and plant it in the ground.I'm afraid to disturb it while blooming.Should I leave it like it is for now ? Also what could be wrong with the leaves ?I would love any help you could give.
Thanks-Lynda

Hi Lynda, It sounds like the hib is under stress, maybe lake of water or to much water, it could be lack of sunlight also or la lack of a good fertilizer for hibs, it could be many things, what is needed is a little more information, Like how it being taken care of example would be how much water it gets, how much sunlight it get, what temperatures its been in, how much fertilizer have you use and what type. Fertilizer should be low in phosphorus and high in potassium. We need this info. to be able to help you better, and if you post a photo of the hib plant even better yet. we await for your info on this forum to help you save your hib.

Wilfred

Agreed. Need a little more information I would think. Not sure why you would be thinking of putting it into the ground if its a tropical hibiscus? That would mean you would only have to dig it up again in the fall?
Jon

Hi Lynda,

I would have to agree with wilfred and Jon. We might can help. Wilfred did ask some excellent questions. And Jon makes a good point about planting it. Lets get it healthy in the pot before you decide to put it in the ground. Also, planting right now may do it in with the stress if it's not healthy.

Take Care,
Robert

Thanks everone.I had to be offline for awhile. We first had a very dry spell. During that I watered it every day. The last few days it has rained a lot.I thought my DH had fertilized it,but I found out he had not. He finally gave it MG 24-8-16. It is in full sun.Ihave to replace my camera.Actually it was probably all of the things you mentioned.I'll go ahead and give it a few days to recover,maybe I will have my camera by then.Thank you so much for responding.

Lynda trying to spread the hibiscus love here. If you are looking to add to your hibiscus collection there is a great offer on some beautiful plants through a DG co-op. Check it out :-)

http://www.atouchofthetropics.net/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?%St...

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1002454/

Hi Lynda,

I am sure you already know this but be sure to water it in well before you fertilize it. Also, try to fertilize it consistantly every 7 to 10 days. You will love the end result.

Robert

Thank you my hib loving friends for helping out like always, can be counted on when somebody needs help with there hibs.

Wilfred

I finally got photos of the hibiscus I was asking about. It looks so lanky. Do you think I should prune it?The first pic shows the way a couple of leaves were looking.

Next pic.
It has lots of flowers ready to open on the end of the stems,but not full around bottom.

Hi Lynda_45,

I'll let the experts weigh in on the condition of your leaves but I wanted to mention that your plant is a hardy hibiscus, not a tropical. However, I did notice that you are participating in the HypnoticBlooms co-op and will be receiving some tropical hibiscus from Robert (Pizzone01) next month so you will have both kinds soon!

Congratulations and welcome to the addiction. :-)

d

Hi Lynda,

Looks like Lord Baltimore but I am not too sure with the hardy's. Cutting about 6 to 8" off each branch will ultimately make it bushier. When you do this just prune 2 to 3 branches at a time so you can still enjoy some blooms. Or you can cut every other branch and 4 weeks later cut the rest. You will start seeing buds in 5-6 weeks from the cut branches and new branches. Now that I've totally confused you LOL

Robert

Hi Linda, it looks normal under the conditions it was in from what I can observe. the lanky appearance it has is do on probably not enough direct sun light on her when she was starting to grow, the separation between leave is indicative of this and the curling and dropping off of lower leave also is a sign, also bigger leaves. Some plant need more direct sunlight than others and when they fell to gain it the leaf separation widens and leaves get bigger to maximise the light their receiving, also the lower and inner leaves turn yellow and curve and fall off when the upper part of the plant grows and block the light needed from the lower leaves to function right, you can fallow Robert's advise and recommendations and try to get a bushier plant or you can leave it and enjoy your blooms for now, but ether way I would recommend a little more direct sunlight, but do it gradually so it would adapt to the change without burning the leaves, and with more sunlight you'll need to water her more to compensate water evaporation through leaves. Other than that your plant looks healthy, just might need a little MG 24-8-16 fertilizer to help her new growth

Wilfred

Thanks to you all. That is just the information I have needed. I am very excited to get my new plants from the co-op. Can you tell me the difference in a tropical hib and a hearty one? Which is easier to grow ?Thanks again everyone so far, I love this Hib community,you are all so nice and patient.
Lynda

Hi Lynda
A tropical hibiscus cannot withstand temperatures below 32 degrees and a hearty one can. For that reason you would have to keep your tropical hibiscus outside from spring through summer and must bring it inside once nighttime temperatures get close to 32 degrees. You can overwinter them inside as long as you have an area inside that gets some sun. A hearty one can be put in the ground where you live. It will die back in the fall, but it should come back late spring the following year.
I've never grown a hearty one in my climate. I do believe they need winter dormancy and we don't have those conditions here in South Florida. Since I've never grown both varieties it wouldn't be fair to you if I made comments comparing the two in terms of growing ease or difficulty. I'm sure someone else on here can help you out with that question.
Be well,
Jon

Thanks Jon, for taking the time to respond. Everytime someone who has experience helps some of us who have none, it just helps us all reach our ultimate goal, beautiful plants.
Lynda

You're welcome Lynda. I've only had two years of experience with hibiscus and other flowering plants. If I can help someone not make some of the mistakes I made in the past two years then it's a good thing.