Melinda Myers

Chinese Hibiscus

Botanical Name

Hibiscus rosa-sinensis

Hardiness

Zones 9 to 11, annual elsewhere

Height

4 to 10 feet

Width

4 to 6 feet

Flowers

Summer to fall: white, yellow, peach, orange, red; double or single

Light

Full sun to part shade

Soil

Moist, well-drained

Planting & Care

• Protect from strong winds
• Can overwinter as a houseplant

Problems

Aphids, mealybugs, mites, scale, whiteflies

Varieties

• Cherry Mojito - velvet red flowers with dark centers
• Light My Fire - golden orange flowers with red eye, 4-6' tall and wide
• Mango Daiquiri - large 8" wide double purple flowers with golden yellow edges
• Creole Lady - blue-purple blooms rimmed with apricot orange, 4-6' tall and wide
• Multi-Tropic Yellow - golden yellow flowers on compact plants, 3-4' tall
• Eye of Kali - bright yellow flowers with red and pink centers
• Golden Halo - golden yellow blooms with reddish-pink centers
• Nectar Pink - double pink blooms
• Multi-Tropic Orange - bright orange flowers on compact plants
• Black Dragon - burgundy flowers with black centers
• Voodoo Queen - pink blooms with violet centers and burgundy throat maturing throughout the day to yellow petals with gray-lavender centers with a strawberry heart
• Delta Dawn - scarlet-red star-shaped eye is surrounded by lavender to gray and pale yellow at the petals' edge