Overwintering LUNA hisbiscus in Florida

I grew some luna hibiscus from seeds this year and they've been blooming all summer - love them! I was wondering if anyone from central or northern Florida have grown these before and know if they will survive in the ground or if I need to keep them growing in the greenhouse (or do they need a dormant, rest period to perform best)?

I know that they are HARDY much farther north than I am, BUT here is the problem I've had here - one week it will be freezing, the next week it will be warm, then freezing,then warm - my plants get so confused and start budding out in the middle of January and then get frozen again in late January and then bud out again in Feb, and get frozen in March, etc. . . Last year I lost all my Texas Star to this - they just budded out so many times and got frozen back so many times, they died, even tough they are hardy to like zone 5 or 6.

So, I was wondering if anyone had any experience with these hibiscus and if you know if they must have a rest period or if I keep them in pots all winter will they still be good bloomers next year or if anyone has grown these in the ground in similar winter conditions and had any luck.

Any info would be appreciated.

Onalee

I am in the same zone and I cut all my hardy hibiscus back hard in the late winter/early spring. I lose a lot of plants to that darn warm spell/cold spell syndrome but the hibiscus, including the Texas Star, have done OK with being cut back. They perform best for me on new wood.

I have some seedlings of the Luna Swirl. What do you feed them? I gave them a little SuperThrive on Monday. My house is brick...Do you think that if planted near the foundation of the house they might do better than out in the open?

Hi Gardenia,
I feed mine Miracle grow and also some time release fertilizer (like osmocote) - they seem to be pretty heavy feeders when blooming.

The plants getting cold isn't really the problem, it's the warm/cold cycle making them come out of dormancy too soon. Not sure if they were by the house they would stay alive all winter or not - and if so, I don't know if they NEED a period of dormancy to perform best.

I cut my Texas Star back too, the problem is, they start with new shoots several times during the year - and, after a few times of that new growth getting frozen, it seems to just kill the plant entirely.

Onalee

I've never grown them myself, but they have a reputation for being very slow to get going in the spring (I've seen people mention June as being when they start to come back up). So I think they'll probably be less susceptible than other plants to breaking dormancy too early since it seems like it takes quite a lot of time for them to decide it's actually spring.

Thanks for that info - I guess, since I have 3 of them, I could plant a couple and keep one in a pot and just see which way works best here.

thanks again,
Onalee

I also grow the Luna Hibiscus from seed and as mentioned earlier, they are hardy in Northern States also. To keep the extremities in weather conditions a bit more stable, I'd try mulching with Shredded Hardwood Mulch. We purchased the mulch at Home Depot and have found that it helps protect the roots beautifully. Snug