Hibiscus

Mon Aug 22, 2011 11:08 pm

I have an annual Hibiscus plant that I have had for several years. I live in Illinois and every year I bring it in the house in the fall and put it in my basement and water it - It gets some light and surprisingly blooms quite a bit. Every spring I give it some food and take it back out in it's pot, prune it back and it blooms again. This year I followed the same process and the plant is big and beautiful and healthy, but no blooms. It's been a hot summer in Illinois and I water it everyday. It's in the same spot as always, so I know it's getting enough light. Should I be feeding it more? Do I need to report the plant and start over? I love the blooms but it's almost September and not 1 flower. HELP!
ld

Tue Aug 23, 2011 1:03 am

That seems to be a lot of work for blooms. Yes I believe repotting it could help but how are you going to transfer it? If you can mix in some compost or manure. Is there a spot close to the house that gets sun all day or P.M. that you might want to plant it outside and take a chance that the heat from the house would keep the soil from freezing too deep? I'd also put some leaves over the plant and possible chicken wire to keep it in place. You might want to buy a gunea pig plant and experiment.

Tue Aug 23, 2011 5:07 pm

I have one that I bring in every winter that is 6' tall. Last fall, before I brought it in for the winter, I laid it on it's side, pulled it out of the pot and root pruned it. I then re-potted it in the same container. I did trim the whole plant down and reshaped it to fit in the house. It did very well this summer.