DraDiana said: Names for blooms posted above:
"Hardy Hibiscus Row"
Candy Crush
Flower of an (the?) Hour
Holy Grail
Splash Pinot Grigio
Cinnamon Grappa
Perfect Storm
Amaretto
Starry Starry Night
Holy Grail bud

Thank you. What a beautiful bunch of flora.

I planted some new seeds and wanted to share progress. Shout out to @DraDiana

DraDiana said: Names for blooms posted above:
"Hardy Hibiscus Row"
Candy Crush
Flower of an (the?) Hour .... Hibiscus trionum aka flower-of-an-hour , good-night-at-noon an annual Hibiscus that grows like a weeds . one of my favorite
Holy Grail
Splash Pinot Grigio
Cinnamon Grappa
Perfect Storm
Amaretto
Starry Starry Night
Holy Grail bud

Thank you for that info., Svend.

GenXNEGeorgia said: I planted some new seeds and wanted to share progress. Shout out to @DraDiana

Those seeds have a long shelf life!
I wonder if some of those will have blooms like Berry Awesome. I had 2 from that cross turn out that way - a really a lovely color.

Still catching up - July 18th...
Flower of an Hour:

Ballet Slippers (I gave this one to my best friend last month);

I finally weeded, and pulled up all my garlic, so the Hibiscuses are visible again.



Candy Crush:


Holy Grail:

Evening Rose:

Mars Madness:

Cherry Choco Latte:


Airbrush Effect:

Plum Fantasy:

To be continued - photo downloads take forever here.

DraDiana said: Those seeds have a long shelf life!
I wonder if some of those will have blooms like Berry Awesome. I had 2 from that cross turn out that way - a really a lovely color.

I will definitely let you know. I planted all the seeds but need to find more seeds of darker colored foliage and red or pink flowers I have PLENTY OF SEEDS for this one. I don't know if I have the label anymore but this one has gotten really big!

Jackie,
I suspect one parent may be my Blue River II x Blue River II seedling - snow white petals, stamens and pistils and the shape of the petals. The large size and red center could be about anything, though. I hope that label is around somewhere.

July 18th blooms, continued...

Splash Pinot Grigio:

Pink Elephant:

Mocha Moon x Midnight Marvel:

Starry Starry Night:


Amaretto:


Cranberry Crush:


Cinnamon Grappa:


Luna Rose:

Question for you hibiscus experts: I have seeds saved from my hibiscus (sorry, can't find
the tag) and would like to start some seedlings. Do the seeds need any special treatment
before sowing? Like nipping them as other hard-shell seeds? Or just straight sow into
container? Thank you for sharing your experience and expertise! I've enjoyed the blooms
here.

Hi Angie!
As long as they are Hardy Hibiscus, and not tropical, here's what you need to know:
They do need to be scarified. I used sandpaper. I found that scratching off the dark brown layer to the lighter brown underlayer gave better results than exposing the white seed inside. (For that reason, I suspect "nipping" might cut too deep.)
Then I soaked them in warm water. If they sank to the bottom in a day or two, I would plant them, and nearly all would be up in another 4 to 7 days. The warm water soak isn't required - I just wanted to avoid wasting potting soil and effort on the floaters, which rarely ever germinate.
The key is to keep them really wet before and after germination. Their ancestors are known as Swamp Mallows for good reason.
Post photos of your results, please!

Put the seed in very strong tea for 72 hours , seeds will germinate in days in wet soil .

Sounds interesting, Svend. What type of tea? (asking because I drink hibiscus tea).

That sounds easier than sanding!

Thanks, all. I'll try the tea method on some and scarifying others.

Let us all know how that goes, please.

DraDiana said: Jackie,
I suspect one parent may be my Blue River II x Blue River II seedling - snow white petals, stamens and pistils and the shape of the petals. The large size and red center could be about anything, though. I hope that label is around somewhere.

Though my memory is as sharp as a popsicle stick , I don't quite remember seeing any labels with the word 'blue' in them. I'll look for the labels again and scour through my seed binders.

This year I'm wrapping the white nursery tags around the stems so they will stay with the plant.

for the Jackie.

MoeOC said: Thank you for that info about hibiscus hybrids not self-pollinating. I didn't know that. Many years ago I collected seed from a large pink hibiscus that I admired that was growing in a public garden. I grew about 6 plants from that seed. Five of them were pink, and one was a large white one. I had to move, so I only have two left ( pink ones). Each year after blooming I've eagerly waited and watched for them to produce a seed pod, but they never did. Maybe I'll try planting a different variety, and see if they'll pollinate. If not, maybe I'll try to reproduce them by cuttings. Thanks for the info about the lack of self-pollination. I wonder, though, how the original plant that I collected the seed from had managed to produce so much fertile seed.

I just want to add an updateto my previous post. Last Fall, for the first time, one of those pink hibiscus plants I'd grown many years ago from seed, actually did produce one seed pod. I was surprised, as it hadn't ever before produced a seed pod, though it blooms annually. There are no other hibiscus plants nearby (except for the other pink one, it's seed sibling, that I'd planted at the same time.) And so it must have either self-pollinated, or been pollinated by its sibling, which bloomed at the same time.

Anyway, I collected the seeds and planted them in a little plastic container, which I left outside all winter, where it was occasionally covered by snow, and was subjected to several cycles of freezing and thawing. Right now (April), I'm waiting to see if there's any germination.

I hope you get some plants! Many of the older varieties of Hardy Hibiscus are self fertile, but hand pollination can improve the amount of seeds obtained. My wild species are total pollinator magnets and never need hand pollination. I like to start the seeds inside in Winter under grow lights, because they are more likely to bloom within one year instead of two. I have had volunteers come up from seed in the yard, so you may have success.