hibiscus

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gingerlily Paxton, FL(Zone 8a) Apr 06, 2001

Out of 1267 members, does anyone out there know anything about pruning hibiscus? Mine is looking leggy. I wondered if I pruned it, would leaves come out lower on the stems? I asked this question back in March but no one answered. So I'm trying again.

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notmartha Bay City, MI(Zone 6a) Apr 06, 2001

is it a tropical or a hardy hibicus. I only grow the hardy ones and they come up from new growth late spring.

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Rosie163 Fort Smith, AR(Zone 7a) Apr 06, 2001

Hey, Gigerlily. I would assume you are asking about the tropical hibiscus. If so, they can be pruned to get the effect you want. I have two (four years old) that we plant out in the spring and winter over in the greenhouse. I always prune them hard in the fall when we bring them in and they bounce back fuller than ever. We even top prune the roots to fit them back into their pots. They seem to benefit from the pruning and like you say, they get leggy otherwise.

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Surf Whittier, CA(Zone 9a) Apr 07, 2001

Hi Gingerlily, My Mom has a huge tropical hibiscus that must be at least 20 years old. It was forming a solid, ungainly mass that spread about 8' at the base and went up past the roof. I trimmed it for her into a multi-branched tree form, and it did beautifully. Then, her "gardener" guy decided to "trim" it last fall, and the result was 5 naked trunks that ranged in diameter from 4-7 inches, with NO leaves, and maybe 4 twiggy branches (he must have missed butchering them,) also with no leaves. I thought it was done for, but the poor thing has indeed put leaves out on those old trunks, so it will probably make it, though who knows what it will look like. I wouldn't suggest this sort of butchering, but they do seem to grow from old wood. Good luck with yours! --Surf :)

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gingerlily Paxton, FL(Zone 8a) Apr 08, 2001

I really don't know if it's tropical or hardy. I've had it two or three years in a pot. It's only about 2 feet tall. It has yellow/orange blooms with red centers. I bring it in the house in winter because I've not known if it would survive the winter in zone 8 or not. Although it doesn't look as good during the winter, when I keep it near a window it just keeps on blooming all through the winter months. Thanks for your help.

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Rosie163 Fort Smith, AR(Zone 7a) Apr 09, 2001

Most likely it is a tropical. Hardy hibiscus have huge blooms, mostly in shades of red, deep pink, light pink and white. The tropicals come in a wide rage of bright colors and are smaller flowers. Tropicals don't like temps much under 45 degrees and if you have freezes, you are wise to bring it in. Repotting might be a good idea this year. You can trim back the root system or upgrade to a larger pot when you trim back the stalks.

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