Linda,
Some of this information is from my experiences and others will add more.

1. Yes, not only are the American and International Hibiscus Societies good resources, but Hidden Valley Hibiscus (HVH) in California has some great information not only on the web pages, but in their forums.
http://www.exotic-hibiscus.com/

2. There is one book, but some of the information may be older and you might find better info online. " The Tropical Hibiscus Handbook" from the AHS.

3. I personally categorize Tropicals (Hibiscus Rosa-Senensis) into 3 groups. Old Originals, Easy Exotics, and Pampered Exotics.
Old Originals are early cultivars (CVs). You find the majority of these at big box stores. They have either one or two colors and require the least amount of attention. These are your 'Breeze and 'Wind series varieties, and others such as Red Dragon, Butterfly, Brilliant, or Seminole Pink.
-Easy Exotics are newer CVs that have the more interesting colors and require a little more attention. They are well branching, stable plants that offer interesting colors. Personally mine include 'Voodoo Magic', 'Erin Rachael', 'Cosmic Dancer', 'Red Riding Hood' and it looks like 'Thunder Egg' to name a few.
-Pampered Exotics are uniquely colored tropicals that need more attention. For whatever reason they need additional work to keep them producing. Three CVs of note are 'Red Dragon' (suffers from quick and unexpected limb loss), 'Sea Spray' (highly susceptible to Nitrogen burn), and ' Night Runner' (Needs staking and coaching). If you search images of these, you will understand a collectors desire to own. I know of three sources to order plants and actually receive them. HVH (picture of Thunder Egg below that arrived last Friday), Winn (Merkity can add better info on him). And Dupont ( is a wholesaler to nurseries. They are one of the top breeders of new CVs and many of their blooms are award winners. These include Voodoo Magic, Red Dragon, Night Runner, Swamp Music, Gabriel, and many more.).
http://www.exotic-hibiscus.com/
http://www.fancyhibiscus.com/
http://dupontnursery.com/

4. I have all of my Hibiscus in pots. This requires more water and a bit more attention, but I can bring the tropicals in each winter, and move them for color variety. Currently I have about 45 plants total that are Hibiscus Rosa-Senensis, Hibiscus Syriacus (Rose of Sharon), and Hibiscus Moschutoes (Rose or Swamp Mallows).

5. As far as I know, you can grow all varieties outdoors year round. The Rose of Sharon is the only question mark. Others in the area might chime in here. I live in Kansas, so I can only grow non-tropicals outside year round.

Hope this Helps,
Ed

Linda, I have found that for most plants, I get better information in the Florida Gardening forum than in the plant specialty forum. That is because in the plant specialty forum, many/most of the posters are trying to grow the plant outside of it's favored zones. For example, in the Citrus Forum, many, many of the posters are northerners growing potted citrus that they drag inside every winter. If you are have questions about Tropical Hibiscus (not Hardy Hibiscus), you might want to try the Florida or Texas Gardening forums. That is what I have to do. Note my post to this forum from a few days ago that still sits unanswered. It's because very few people here are growing tropical hibiscus in the ground.

Good luck with your plants! They are going to be beautiful!

Carol in Jacksonville

Ed,

Thank you so much for your detailed reply. I can certainly see why people would treasure the pampered exotics, having looked up the ones you mentioned .... they're spectacular. I'm really pleased to hear that Hibiscus will happily grow in pot's as we are quite limited to flower bed space here. Do you ever buy plants from Ebay or Amazon, as I see quite a few advertised on there?

Thanks for the tip Carol, will certainly have a look at the forums you mentioned.

Linda,
You are welcome. There are some very knowledgeable members that pop in from time to time on this forum. I have nothing but hibiscus, although the wife has other plants.
I have never purchased Hibiscus from those sites. I just do not get a 'warm and fuzzy' feeling. I would rather wait and purchase from a known vendor.
Just my opinion,
Ed

This post was edited by Gutzmek on Fri, May 24, 13 at 20:03

Ed,

At what stage will you pot the small plant in your photo into a larger pot and do you plant it straight into a large pot, or do you plant into a medium pot first. Also what potting compost do you use and what fertilizer do you recommend?

Thanks
Linda

Yes and there are a lot of Hibiscus lovers on gardenweb.com who may enjoy sharing some of what they grow. But I have found that shipping can run from $6 up so try to find a member close enough you might enjoy a drive in order to find what you are looking for or what nursery they recommend. Some hibiscus can get very large in the right location so that might be a consideration also. My Confederate Rose Hibiscus mostly only blooms in the fall and can get over 20 feet tall with a 6+ inch trunk. My Texas Star Hibiscus have also gotten over 10 feet all in the right climate and soil along with tropical hibiscus if not pruned back. I am by far no expert but we are allowed to comment on what we have found to work in our area and soil. My Rose-of-Sharon are usually kept to the size I enjoy in my flower beds. Each hibiscus is so much different than the other which to me it the enjoyment in raising them. We were able to enjoy the double tropical ones a few years back when we had the room. I loved how they looked like 2 blooms-in-one when the warm sun caused this to happen. I do believe you are in for an adventure with hibiscus.

Well my adventure with Hibiscus has began. I purchased a plant from Lowes over the weekend called South Pacific Sipper. The picture shows that it will have large, double, pink blooms, and although it doesn't have any flowers yet, it has plenty of good sized buds and seems to be in good condition. As soon as one of the flowers appears, I'll post a pic on here.

Linda,
I usually wait a couple weeks before transplanting any new hibiscus (especially shipped). As you might have seen from others photos, plants will many times react adversely to change. I like to slowly adapt them to the environment they will be living in. At this time I will pot them up to the next larger size. I.E. these are 4" so I move them to a 6" to 8". Tropicals can easily survive many years in a 10-12" pot with good root pruning. If you have more than 1 plant in a pot you may want to look at large pots. The key I have learned is slow acclimation. Change a single environmental factor, and do it slowly.
I used to use a simple MG moisture control soil with extra perlite added. I have since learned that there is no consistency with the product in regards to material and nutrients. I am working on a mixture that works best. I can supply nutrients, but the plants need a good material for roots to grab on to and excellent drainage. I drill a lot of holes in the bottom of the pots and add a layer of rocks to keep the drain holes cleared.
As far as feeding, I have been mixing my own formula. Unfortunately, this is time consuming and I am looking to streamline. I have an order placed to a hibiscus specialty grower to get a formula. For me it is about how valuable my time is.
Hope this helps,
Ed

I was born and raised here in Florida and just about everyone in town grows hibiscus. My grandmother's is easily 6 feet tall and blooms up until November as it just doesn't get that cold here at all anymore. I live in North Florida near Panama City and we're zone 8/9ish. Our winters are pretty nonexistent these days give or take a few cold nights. They end up looking like brown sticks that always bloom starting around late Feb./ March.

UF has some great resources for plants that do well in the state in all our varied climates. I just recently purchased my third Hibiscus from Home Depot, it did not have a name, but so far it is blooming like crazy. Some local nurseries in your area might have some more exotic types. Mine are potted as I live too close to the beach for anything save sea oats to thrive well and most days the sea breeze is too much. They are doing fabulously. Grandma's is in the ground so either way you want to go should work as long as you have decent soil.

Check out the link and there is another one for the Rose of Sharon type that also seems to grow well here according to UF. I haven't tried with them yet, but am thinking about purchasing some. I've read mixed reviews and opinions on growing them here. Good luck!

As for me..... I wanted hibiscus to draw in hummingbirds, but so far, nada. My grandmother has lots and she's only a 10 minute drive from me, so I don't know what gives.

Here is a link that might be useful: University of Florida

Here is the link for UF's recommendations for the Rose of Sharon type.

Here is a link that might be useful: UF- Rose of Sharon

The first flower from my first Hibiscus, South Pacific Sipper.

This post was edited by Linda_Brookes on Thu, May 30, 13 at 21:14

Thank you to everyone who has replied to this thread with some very valuable advice. I now have two books about Hibiscus, and my first plant is managing to survive, and much to my surprise, appears to be thriving :) Time to expand my collection and look for Hibiscus number 2.

Linda,
Glad to hear the experience has been a positive one and your first blooms looks great. My advice would be about being selective. Unfortunately, or fortunately, I have about 40+ hibiscus growing around here. This does not include new cross bred seedlings and cuttings. Every weekend the wife and I find ones that we like, but we always ask, is it unusual enough to get. We have created a list, and either actively look for these, or use these as a "wake-up call" for a new potential plant. We recently grabbed a Dupont 'Swamp Music'. An image search might explain. As you learn more, please share with others, as Darren has been a great help with cuttings.
Ed

Linda,
Glad to hear the experience has been a positive one and your first blooms looks great. My advice would be about being selective. Unfortunately, or fortunately, I have about 40+ hibiscus growing around here. This does not include new cross bred seedlings and cuttings. Every weekend the wife and I find ones that we like, but we always ask, is it unusual enough to get. We have created a list, and either actively look for these, or use these as a "wake-up call" for a new potential plant. We recently grabbed a Dupont 'Swamp Music'. An image search might explain. As you learn more, please share with others, as Darren has been a great help with cuttings.
Ed

Just took a look at the Dupont web page, they have some super plants. I see what you mean about Swamp Music, it's very unusual coloring. I joined the Facebook group for the International Hibiscus Society, my goodness there are some fabulous blooms out there.