? Good Starter Hibiscus for Zone 5B Central Illinois?

Hello All!

I just moved into a new house and can't wait to start planting!!

Any recommended Hibiscus for Illinois Zone 5B?
I remember having a huge pink flowering hibiscus in our yard as a small child, and can't wait to grow some!!

K GRIMES

There are only 2 species that I know of which you can really grow in your zone--there's Hibiscus syriacus (more commonly known as Rose of Sharon) which is a shrub and has smaller flowers http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/adv_search.php?searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=hibiscus&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=syriacus&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&searcher%5Bgrex%5D=&search_prefs%5Bblank_cultivar%5D=&search_prefs%5Bsort_by%5D=rating&images_prefs=both&Search=Search , or there's Hibiscus moscheutos (hardy hibiscus). It's an herbaceous perennial that dies back every year and then comes back the following year. They have much bigger showier flowers http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/adv_search.php?searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=hibiscus&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=moscheutos&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&searcher%5Bgrex%5D=&search_prefs%5Bblank_cultivar%5D=&search_prefs%5Bsort_by%5D=rating&images_prefs=both&Search=Search

The hardy hibiscus are frequently very slow to get going again in the spring--so slow that many people think they died and aren't coming back, and then in June or so they finally start to show some signs of life. Rose of Sharon is a shrub so while it'll lose its leaves over the winter it'll leaf out in the spring and it's not nearly as slow to get going as the hardy hibiscus is. But the flowers are smaller and not as showy.