Hibiscus: Crimson Eyed Rose Mallow Hardy (Hibiscus moscheutos)
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General Information
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Germination
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Seedlings
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Crop Care
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Seed Saving
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Companion Planting
Also Known As: Marshmallow Hibiscus and Swamp Rose Mallow.
Ease of Growing: Easy
Grown As: Perennial
Habit: Shrub
Maturity (Blooms): Jul , Aug , Sep.
Hardiness: This variety is very hardy and can tolerate frozen temperatures up to -13°.
Water: High
Light: Sun: min. 6 hours daily (Warm, Hot). Full sun.
Soil Moisture: Moist , Wet
Soil pH: Acidic (pH 6.8)
Aquatic: yes
Soil Description: Moist to wet, slightly acidic soils, fine-medium textured.
Conditions Comments: Clumps of Hibiscus start to grow late in the season and flower over a long period in late summer.
Attracts Beneficials: Yes. Bees, Butterflies and Hummingbirds. The foliage may be used as a butterfly larval host by Hairstreaks, Blues, Coppers, and others.
Containers?: Yes.
Plant Size: 3-6'
Spacing: 2-3'
USDA Hardiness Zones: 4-10 (mulch in 5, 6, 7, 8)
Produces: 6-8" wide white to pink flowers with a dark burgundy eye that are enjoyed by hummingbirds.
Uses: Excellent for adding bold summer color to the perennial garden and landscape. You can also use them as the center piece for large container gardens, in bog gardens, at the edges of ponds, or in any other sunny and consistently moist site.
They are perennials so come fall the frost will kill the top of the plants but the roots will be fine. Sometime after they have gone through a hard freeze where the temperatures drop below freezing for at least a few hours go ahead and cut them back to stubs or only three or four inches from the ground. If you want you can wait and do this early spring.
Come spring they are a little slow to get started so be patient. But once they start growing they really take off and by the end of July, early August they start making flowers.
Suggested Varieties
Milkweed: Swamp (Asclepias incarnata)
As the name indicates, these swamp milkweed seeds for sale thrive in swamps and low meadows or along streams. The bright pink flowers attract swarms of bees and butterflies, and have a sweet scent described as similar to vanilla or cinnamon. At one time, the silk from swamp milkweed seed pods was spun for fabric or used for stuffing pillows; in World War II, school children gathered the silk to provide a cheap filling for soldiers' life jackets. Commercial attempts to make use of this abundant plant included the manufacture of paper, fabric, lubricant, fuel, and rubber; eventually these became impractical and were abandoned. Though this plant is toxic to most animals, butterflies are immune to the plant's poison and actually become rather poisonous themselves as protection from predators.