Tropical Feel Garden in Zone 7 - Hibiscus Moscheutos
hibiscus moscheutos pink
Next in the series of Tropical Feel Garden posts is the Hibiscus Moscheutos. These hibiscus shrubs can bring a tropical feel all the way down to Zone 5. They are very similar to their tropical cousins in that they come if several colors like red, pink, white, maroon and salmon. They feature large exotic tropical blooms measuring up to 8″ across. Unlike their tropical cousins which can get huge and take over an area, the Hibiscus Moscheutos stay rather compact measuring 4′-8′ tall with a 4′-6′ span.
Perhaps the best thing about the Hibiscus Moscheutos is that they are very easy to grow. I have some that are growing just fine in a variety of soil types and sun exposures. Though they are reportedly full sun shrubs, they seem to do best and grow fastest in part shade areas. I plated some bare root ’sticks’ last year from DirectGardening.com that I got for a less than a buck a piece that grew incredibly fast. They were about 1.5′ high with a 1/4″ trunk when I planted them last June. The tallest one is now about 5′ tall with a 1″ trunk less than a year later. The other great thing about these is that even the smallest of shrubs will give you some blooms. I had little 6″ plant that was given to me produce a nice 4″ in bloom. All the ones I planted last year gave blooms just 2 months later. Suffice it to say, these are some of my favorite fast growing bushes and I highly recommend some for your tropical garden. If you plan on getting some of these, I recommend they be planted a good 2 months ahead of fall so they have time to get established before the frost. They do do not seem to like being planted in the fall, or at least not the ones I have tried as they did not make it through the winter. You will not have any problems if planted in the summer. I should also mention that these are kind of pricey at the home stores, I have seen some for $25 that were probably the same size as the bare root ones will be in less than a year. So get them on line from places like DirectGardening.com, Michigan Bulb or 4Seasonsnurseries.com.