Help

I was given a couple of newly rooted plants recently. They were doing fine but now I notice spots especially on the smallerr one. Can anyone tell me what they are and what i can do about them? Both are in a sunny window.

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Hi Maureen

It's just a harmless fungus that appears on hibiscus plants. It's usually caused by the foliage staying too damp for too long a period of time. Other factors that can cause the foliage to stay too damp, for a longer than normal period of time, is cooler temperatures (perhaps its cool in the house). Poor air circulation or poor air circulation resulting from several plants being too close together can also cause this fungal problem. I get the same problem, usually during the winter here, in Florida, when the plants get wet from morning dew. The dew takes longer to dry off because the temperatures are lower. The condition usually gets better when the days warm up. If you have plants pretty close together space them apart some more. If you're wetting/misting the foliage you should probably stop and see if that helps. The spots won't correct themselves and the foliage will eventually fall when new leaves grow. If there are just a couple of leaves and you're sick of looking at it you can pinch them off. You could also apply a fungicide to reduce the chances of it spreading to more foliage. Hope this info is helpful and makes sense.

Jon

Oh, thank you, that's terrific information. I have been misting them so will stop and it is cool up here but thre's not a lot to do about that, it is in a sunny window. Do you use liquid or dry fungicide?
Also, I have a large hibiscus that I need to store because it is too big. Is it ok to cut it back (Blueberry Thrill, let me know if you want a piece)? And how cool will it tolerate, how much to water? It's a gorgeous plant. Here's a picture. The flowers are huge.

Maureen

I had a feeling you might be misting it, but you never know. The coolness just makes it more likely to develop the fungus since the foliage takes longer to dry. There are tons of fungicides, but my favorite is called "Daconil". It comes in a red colored spray bottle and I buy it at Lowes or Home Depot.

You can prune back the hibiscus now, if it is already inside. You don't want to expose the fresh cut to cold weather/frost if its still outside. Being that you're keeping it inside, the ideal time to prune it would around March (two months prior to when you would be putting it back outside). That would be the ideal time to stimulate new growth and would give it a "boost" right before you're getting ready to put it back outside into real sun. It takes a few months for the pruned branches to grow and set buds. That's why I'm thinking March would be your best choice.

I have "Blueberry Thrill", but thank you much for your generous offer Maureen

Regards,
Jon

It is already inside, bt it would be better towait till march? I haveto move it upstairs where it is cool and wont' get a ton of sun. If i do that and don't prune it, what do I do about watering, etc?
Sorry to be such a pest.
Maureen

You can prune it whenever you'd like. When you prune it releases a growth enzyme. It just seems like the best time to release that growth enzyme would be a few months before you're putting it back outside. It would give the plant some growth momentum going just at the right time. There really isn't a right or wrong answer regarding that question though.

It's not gonna need lots of sun, while inside, to still look healthy and green all winter. It's the blooming that is much less likely while its inside, but that's fairly typical. You would water it the same way, whether inside or outside. It's going to dry out slower in the cool house, so make sure it's pretty dry before you water it again.

Jon