Growing Hardy Hibiscus from seed is relatively easy. With the exception of wild species, the Luna series and a few other cultivars, the offspring can be uniquely different from either parent plant. If started early enough, they can flower in their first year.
Starting this thread was suggested to me by @ediblelandscapingsc a few months ago. I have a backlog of seedling photos, so I will start at the beginning (just last year). I will post a few at a time, to stretch out the fun.
Please jump in and share your seedlings, too!

Here's where it all started for me, in my basement, under growlights in January 2018:


Introduced to the great outdoors in May, after 2 months in a greenhouse:


First bloom in July - Luna Pink Swirl x Cranberry Crush:

Pod parent Luna Pink Swirl:

Pollen parent Cranberry Crush:

Diana .... your Luna Pink Swirl x Cranberry Crush seedling is gorgeous! absolutely LOVE that color

the red stigma is cool and must have came from Cranberry kid.

My 1st and 2nd seedlings that bloomed last year were Luna Pink Swirl x Cranberry Crush siblings - morning:

Evening:


The 3rd was Cranberry Crush x Mocha Moon:


Cranberry Crush:

Mocha Moon:


Daniel, looks like all 3 got the red stigmas from the Cranberry Crush parent.

Luna white op seedling

Daniel, looks like all 3 got the red stigmas from the Cranberry Crush parent.

It must be a dominate trait. Having records of little things like that can help narrow down goals. I love them all but Luna Pink Swirl x Cranberry Crush is still my favorite out your cranberry crush kids. great job

No clue which one this is, I labeled it but the label didn't last. I may try and narrow it down once it blooms.

pinkiris said:Diana .... your Luna Pink Swirl x Cranberry Crush seedling is gorgeous! absolutely LOVE that color

I gave one to a dear friend, who called me this week to tell me how pretty it is this year.
Here is this year's photo of the one I kept, with "Berry Awesome" below it for comparison:

The color is identical, but my seedling has a bit smaller bloom, and its leaves are like the Luna Pink Swirl.
Berry Awesome was $17.99. The seedling was less than $1, even including the WalMart party cup, seed starter mix, greenhouse rent, water, and electricity for the grow lights. The labor involved is more than offset by the "fun factor".

This seedling is from a seed swap packet labeled simply pink H. moscheutos:

I had 100 seeds (the package said #50). 87 grew. I "found homes" for all but 5. This year's photos:




They appear to be one of the color variants of the wild rose mallow.

Is that the texture of the flower I'm seeing or stripes it almost looks corduroy.

Daniel,
The texture is the typical slightly indented veins. It is accentuated by the white stripes over each vein.
I bagged a bud on each of 3 plants, and when they bloomed, I mixed the pollen and pollinated all 3 with the mixed pollen, to mimic the bees, but without risking pollination by the nearby cultivars. The pods are rapidly filling out.

A few more OP Luna white seedlings



Summerific Cherry Cheesecake OP seedlings



I also found the tag for these they are Southern Belle OP seedlings




I posted one of these sometime last week in the other thread.

I'm not sure I have anything good enough to start doing crosses with yet. Most of these are small, maybe 4 plants so far have blooms around 6 inches the others hover around 3-4 inches.

ediblelandscapingsc said:A few more OP Luna white seedlings



Summerific Cherry Cheesecake OP seedlings



I also found the tag for these they are Southern Belle OP seedlings




I posted one of these sometime last week in the other thread.

The top one looks the most interesting to me. It is tropical looking.

Here is one of my seedlings ... funny I dumped the soil that the seed was in thinking it wasnt going to germinate and low and behold here it comes up and growing and blooming, so unfortunately I do not know which variety this was.

Daniel ... really love your southern belle seedlings! They are all so beautiful!

I have been trying to start double pink and purple rose of sharon seeds for 2 months. With no luck! I used seed starting soil and planted them 1/4 inch deep like the package said and kept them moist but not wet or dry. 30 days with each try and nothing. They are outside in the shaded breezeway and it has been in the 90s for a month. What the heck am I doing wrong???
Thanks for any help.
Sandie

Then there was the Mocha Moon x Midnight Marvel trio last year:
"#1"

"#2"

"3"

I gave this one away to our pest control guy, and he says his wife is very pleased with his contribution to her garden.

"#1" is huge this year. It is as nice as Summer In Paradise, but with Mocha Moon leaves




"#2" has bigger, better blooms this year. Its leaves are darker than either parent, with the same soil and sun exposure.

sandienc said:I have been trying to start double pink and purple rose of sharon seeds for 2 months. With no luck! I used seed starting soil and planted them 1/4 inch deep like the package said and kept them moist but not wet or dry. 30 days with each try and nothing. They are outside in the shaded breezeway and it has been in the 90s for a month. What the heck am I doing wrong???
Thanks for any help.
Sandie

Sandie
I don't know what climate zone you are in. In the colder zones, Rose of Sharon drop their seeds in the Fall and come up in the Spring, want them or not. This suggests that they need a period of being damp and cold prior to germination, known as seed "stratification" to break dormancy. Packaged seeds are often treated somehow to break dormancy, but maybe yours were not. If you are in zone 8 or above, consider ziplocking the pots and sticking them in the fridge for a couple of months, and then take them out again. Otherwise you could try planting them in ground, and see if they pop up next Spring. Don't expect too much at this point. The seed might not have been good, or it may have molded in the heat and humidity.
If you have more seed, and live in zone 7 or less, wait until Fall to plant it in ground, or look up "winter sowing" and try that technique.
I hope this helps.

sandienc said:I have been trying to start double pink and purple rose of sharon seeds for 2 months. With no luck! I used seed starting soil and planted them 1/4 inch deep like the package said and kept them moist but not wet or dry. 30 days with each try and nothing. They are outside in the shaded breezeway and it has been in the 90s for a month. What the heck am I doing wrong???
Thanks for any help.
Sandie

My friend Sharon member Athelabyanothername grows many and says the doubles are not pod fertile so there is a good chance those seeds where blanks.