Thursday, March 22, 2012

Exchanged vine for Hibiscus rosa-sinensis 'Rose Flake'

Good morning Folks,

Here it is Thursday already.  Our weather has been perfect, although the heat and humidity are increasing, but it is still bearable to be outside.

Thank you Eli and Nell for posting what you thought the two unknown to me plants were.  The vine was a honeysuckle, and after researching and reading I decided to take it back.  It was the Japanese honeysuckle which is a #1 for invasive plants here in zone 10 s.e. FL. I did NOT need anything that was going to be invasive, and this one is a vigorous grower, plus birds eat and drop the seeds elsewhere, causing it to take over everywhere, and the environmental people don’t want anyone to grow it. I was really disappointed because that scent was so wonderful!!!

I hoped the place would let me exchange it for another plant and they did.  I saw a beautiful hibiscus and it came home with me.  It is Hibiscus rosa-sinensis 'Rose Flake'. I found out what it was by googling variegated hibiscus.  I think the first on the list was to BernieH’s blog and I was thrilled because she and I grow a lot of the same things.  Her gardens are wonderful and lush.  You can read about this plant on her blog in this post Roseflake and Snowflake. You can also read about it here at Birkdale.

I really am thrilled with all of these plants and I hope to root cuttings from all of them.

03-21-roseflake-hib2

03-21-roseflake-hib

Now, the next one that I didn’t know is  Loropetalum chinense var. rubrum or Chinese Fringe Flower.  It can be grown as a small tree.  I haven’t figured out yet how I will grow it.  I may repot it for now, I’m still thinking about it.

You can read about it here at Grower Jim's and at Nell’s.  I just found another bit about these beauties by Grumpy Gardener.  One of the workers at the garden center said these bloom all year. I didn’t think to ask how big these get, but I am hoping this is the dwarf variety.

03-20-purple-leaves-pink-flowers

I planted the shrimp plant in my shed’s garden.  I repotted the white thunbergia erecta into a large pot. I’ll be working the next three days so the other plants will stay in their pots for now. 

Thanks again for your responses.

Happy Spring Gardening ~ FlowerLady

 

23 comments:

Sunray Gardens said...

Very nice and I don't blame you at all for taking back anything that is highly invasive. Too hard to control them.
Cher Sunray Gardens

Lona said...

Japanese Honeysuckle is invasive here in my 6a zone too. It grows wild and takes over trees and other plants. I am glad you traded it for that beautiful Hibiscus. Have a lovely week.

Mrs. E said...

Beautiful!! Hope they make your world a bit lovelier!

HolleyGarden said...

Love the colors of your variegated hibiscus! The leaves are almost as pretty as the bloom!

Skeeter said...

Great exchange from the honeysuckle to the Hibiscus! Love the colors of the leaves and that will really brighten up a spot! Happy Planting...

Balisha said...

Happy belated birthday. Hope your day was special.
I read with interest.. your post on the plants you selected.I knew that it was honeysuckle. I have three honeysuckles in my woods. I keep them under control and have no problem with them. The hummingbirds love them. I'm sure in your Florida garden they would really take off and get unruly. Nice that they would let you bring them back. I do love the substitute.
Balisha

F Cameron said...

My loreopetalum is blooming right now. I keep it under three feet, trimming and shaping after each bloom. It does bloom several times in the year. I have one that I let grow tall that I'd planned to shape into a tree. However, the deer EAT those and they totally split the top and many branches, so Richard cut it to the ground and we're starting over again. They are tough shrubs.

Susan said...

Hi Flowerlady...I've been away lately and want to wish you a belated birthday. Hope it was a great day! I love both the pretty hibiscus and the lorapetlum. I have several lorapetlums and grow them both ways...as a shrub and a tree. It works well either way. :)

Unknown said...

Good call on the honeysuckle. Beautiful Hibiscus. I have several loros and you will love them. They bloom twice a year here and one of the things I love about them is you can prune anytime of the year you like and you can let it grow to be HUGE, my dad's are over 20 feet or so, mine are around 6 feet. I prefer to keep trimming the lower branches so I can see under them.

The Bama Gardener said...

What a special little Hibiscus! Such pretty variegation.

Kit said...

LOL!! I am loving the shrimp plant, in fact I am so hungry right now I could eat it...LOL Have a great weekend! Kit

Masha said...

I am glad the hibiscus came home with you - it is beautiful! I am enjoying my loropetalum plants too, I love their versatility and ease of care.

sweetbay said...

It is too bad that Japanese Honeysuckle is such a thug. It grows all over the place here and the fragrance is heavenly. In fact it's my favorite fragrance of all.

You asked about whether or not I grow any of my own plants; I grow a ton of stuff every year from cuttings and seeds. There's no way I could fill the space with bought plants although there are a couple of really nice nurseries (Plant Delights and Niche Gardens) within driving distance that we visit once or twice a year.

Carol said...

I agree with Sweetbay about the J. honeysuckle . . . I had to cut mine down and I too am very careful about not getting any plants that are not native. Your hibiscus is stunning . . . the photo . . . the red just jumps off the page. Lovely and thank you so for all your kind words. Carol

NanaK said...

A belated Happy Birthday to you! You did a great job buying those plants. The hibiscus' leaves are as pretty as the bloom and that Thunbergia yellow throat is stunning. I'm glad you were able to return the honeysuckle. I've bought many plants that I've found later to be invasive. UGH. But your story has a happy ending:)

jerilanders said...

I really love honeysuckle, we let it grow in the fields and it smells incredible, but you are correct.. it is quite promiscuous. I found a pink honeysuckle that is not invasive and smells almost as nice. It would be nice climbing one of your arbors.

Annie said...

I'm looking forward to the school holidays at the end of this week, so I can spend some quality time in my garden. I love the scent of the honeysuckle but yes it is vigorous.

Georgianna said...

Hi Flower Lady! A shame about the honeysuckle but there are other plants that smell as good without the problems.

As for the Chinese Fringe Flower, those are marvelous! I have one in a container right now and am happy it survived the winter well. Just incredible colors on the blossoms. They can get fairly big – up to four feet I think, but are slow growers from what I understand.

Thank you for viewing the Paris Flower mag – I really appreciate your supportive words.

Have a wonderful weekend – rain here, ugh.

xoxo – g

David C Brown said...

Great flower photos, "consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they toil not neither do they spin".

tina said...

Hibiscus is a much better plant than honeysuckle. I battle honeysuckle here all the time. What a lovely lorepetulum.

Corner Gardener Sue said...

You have some lovely new additions. It can be challenging keeping track of what is invasive. I am trying to plant native plants in my new bed, but have gotten things I thought that were, but turned out not to be.

Lona said...

Just dropped by to wish you and Hubby a Blessed Easter weekend.Hugs.

Rose said...

I just love your photos! My garden is a mess from all the snow we were blessed at the end of winter and now we have a lot of work to do to restore it's former glory and beauty!