Roy
DRSSOR

sow it
grows

LATE summer and early
fall is not the time one
expects to see flowering
shrubs at their best.

One that is in full bloom
now is the hardy hibiscus.

4 Frequently, when I mention
hibiscus to home owners, their
immediate reaction is to look

* puzzled and say “Isn’t that a
tropical plant 2”

Ie is true that almost all of
the 300 members of the hibis-
cus family are sub-tropical or
tropical but there are a few
hardy varicties.

The Malvaceae family is
‘made up of a thousand species
of herbs, shrubs and trees that

_ are found all over the world
but are most
prevalent in
South
“America. Five
members of

the family are

4 common and
“hibiscus is the
biggest and
best Known.
“; The rropi-

_ cal hibiscus

that is so com-

and seen here
as a tender
house plant is
H. rosa-sinensis or Rose of
China.

Not all hibiscus plants are
_admired for their beautiful
‘flowers. HY, esculentus, or okra.
: produces a long pointed green
{seed pod that is cooked as a

vegetable and is used as a
thickening agent in the prepa-
ration of “gumbos” in the
~ Deep South. The hardy hibis-
cus of horticultural importance
to us is H.. syriacus. This tree-
. like shrub can reach five
_ metres (16.4 ft.) and is often
called the Rose of Sharon or
mallow tree. The name mallow
is interchanged with hibiscus
causing confusion among gar-
deners. H. syriacus is very slow
‘to leaf out in the spring and
does not show buds until mid-

“ |..almost ail
of the 300
members of the
hibiscus family
are sub-tropi-
cal, but there
non in Hawaii are a few hardy
varieties.”

summer. The flowers can be
single or double and do not
emerge until mid-August or
carly September. The colors
range from white through pur-
ple with many variegations,
particularly with the new
hybrids. They prefer a sunny,
well drained location that is
not too exposed to cold winds.

The number of named vari-
eties has increased in the last
few years but these are some
of the better known ones:
“Blushing Bride” (double light
pink); “Blue Bird” (single vio-
let blue with dark eye); “Collie
Mullens” (double purple
lavender); “Diana” (single
large pure white); “Red
Heart” (single white with red
centre); “Woodbridge” (single
rich rose pink with carmine
centre).

VanDusen Gardens has an
excellent collection of hardy
hibiscus and now would be a
good time to see them at their
best.

Another close relative to
hibiscus is Gossypium or the
cotton plant. It is the most
widely grown and of the great-
est economic
importance.
After flower-
ing, the plant
forms a boll,
or rose hip-
like seed pod,
containin;
black see
coated in
white cotton
fibre.
Abutilon or
flowering
maple is a
tropical rela-
tive and pro-

duces a hibiscus-type flower. It-

is not hardy to this area but
can be used as a potted annual
or greenhouse plant. Althaca
officinalis, better known as
hollyhock, comes from the
eastern Mediterranean and is
also closely related to the
hibiscus. Unfortunately, our
damp weather encourages rust
fungus and hollyhocks are dif-
ficult to grow except under the

‘eave on a south wall.

Another close member of
the group that has become
very popular in recent years is
Lavatera. The plant comes in
three different forms and can
be found as an annual, biennial
or shrub. The annual form, L.
trimestris, comes in two colors:
a rich medium pink and pure

Wire Shelving |

._ NEWS photo Terry Poters '

WHILE it is true that almost all of the 300 members of the hibiscus family are sub-tropical or tropical, there
are a few hardy varieties, like the one piciured above, which can grow and bicom on the North Shore.

white. They are very showy in
a massed bed or for cut flow-
ers but do tend to go to seed
before the season is over. L.
aboren is treated as a biennial
and can put on two to three
metres (6.6 - 9.8 ft.) of
growth in orie season. The

LOS

nt

e your storage |

flowers come in various shades
of purple. L. ofbia is a woody
shrub from the western
Mediterranean and has been

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hybridized to produce some
excellent specimens.

L. ‘Barasley’ is by far the
best known and will put on

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two to three meters of growth
in a season. It is not overly
hardy and the top growth may
suffer winter kill. ‘

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