Hardy Hibiscus 'Lord Baltimore'

[John M]

This is my favourite clone of hardy Hibiscus. I saw a mature clump blooming at the front of a local garden centre many years ago and I went in to ask if they'd sell me THAT plant. Well, they wouldn't dig up their specimen; but, they had other, smaller ones for sale. This plant is over 6 feet tall this year and the blooms are about 10" across. Each bloom lasts only one day. They are very prone to bruising and damage, even in a slight breeze; so, I've planted this in a very protected spot on the North side of my greenhouse, which also happens to be the front of the greenhouse. I get to see it every time I head for the door to go inside.

Each year, these plants get bigger by producing more stems than the previousl year. The roots stay dormant until about mid June and then, STAND BACK! From what looks like a dead clump of something from the previous summer, an explosion of new growth will suddenly shoot up. However, if left alone, all the shoots would just grow straight up with no side branching. So, to greatly amplify the number of flowers, I nip off the top of each stem when it reaches about 2.5 feet tall. This causes each single stem to branch out and make 5 or 6 side stems. Each side stem will carry the same number of flowers that the single main stem would've carried. So, by sacrificing the growing tip of each stem, I am multiplying the total flower count for the season by about 500 to 600 percent!

 

[Secundino]

Great!

 

[Lanmark]

Impressive and beautiful!

 

[Erythrone]

Gorgeous!

 

[chris20]

I love these; I used to grow them in Virginia. The neighbors would always ask about them.

 

[TyroneGenade]

Lovely. I wonder if it could tough it out in arctic-blast Iowa?

 

[Gilda]

Beautiful! Would it grow from seed?

 

[John M]

Thanks everyone.

Tyrone, I'm in zone 5. I don't know if it's a,b, or what. However, they are fully hardy here. Not sure about Iowa....but, I'd think so. Check with your local garden centre.

Gilda, I have bought seed packages of these huge-flowered hardy hibiscus in the past. They grew just fine and I had some really, really nice plants. I say "had", because the location where they were growing became shaded by a large, Devil's Walking Stick (relative of Sumac) and the hibiscus eventually suffered too much from the deep shade and died. I didn't move them because at the time, I was pretty sick and not doing any yard work. I miss those plants. But, I'm very happy to have found this 'Lord Baltimore'. While they are all nice, IMO, it's one of very few hardy hibiscus that has flowers which look very much like the tropical varieties.

Of course, to answer your question specifically, No, it will not grow from seed. At least, not this clone. It's a clone....'Lord Baltimore'. It probably started out life as a little green blob of meristematic cells in a test tube. Seed grown plants won't be the same, genetically. So, while you could grow red ones like this; whatever grows from seed won't be 'Lord Baltimore'.

 

[abax]

Wow John, eye-smacking color. I've seen some in this
area that haven't been "pinched" and most of them get
so tall and the flower is so large that the blooms are mostly
on the ground. Seeing them always makes me want to
bang on the owner's door and tell them to cut it back!!!
You have a very nice, full bush there.

 

[John M]

Wow John, eye-smacking color. I've seen some in this
area that haven't been "pinched" and most of them get
so tall and the flower is so large that the blooms are mostly
on the ground. Seeing them always makes me want to
bang on the owner's door and tell them to cut it back!!!
You have a very nice, full bush there.

LOL, Angela! Actually, cutting it back would destroy all the flowering for that year. These grow and bloom on a schedule like other perennials....like Hollyhock, etc. Once they get so tall you feel you'd want to shorten it to keep a nice shape, all the buds for that year would have been formed on the top half of the stems. Remove them and you get no flowers at all until the next year. They don't grow continuously like the woody, tropical types.

Although, I know what you mean about these tall plants falling over under their own weight, ruining the show of flowers. So, when this plant was just getting started this year, in anticipation of them becoming very top heavy with all the side branches and extra flowers, I mounted a wire mesh grate about 18 inches off the ground, right over the plant. The grate stands on 4 legs which are stuck about 6"+ deep into the ground; so, it's very sturdy and stable. As the growths came up under the mesh, I helped them push through, as needed. Once through, they continued to grow, of course. Then, I pinched the tops and made them side branch. Without the grate giving support and stability, this plant would also be flopped over with it's flowers doing a dirt nose dive!

 

[TyroneGenade]

Tyrone, I'm in zone 5. I don't know if it's a,b, or what. However, they are fully hardy here. Not sure about Iowa....but, I'd think so. Check with your local garden centre.

Damn. I'm in zone 4b. :sob:

 

[John M]

If you google, you'll find hardiness information. I found this site right away.

http://http://www.perennialresource.com/encyclopedia/view/?plant=424

It says that 'Lord Baltimore' is hardy down to zone 4! It certainly would be fine if you planted it up against your house foundation. Plus, if you chose a S. or S.E. side, the wall of the house could provide protection from the wind.

BTW: Being a marsh plant, I water my plant thoroughly every day. It's easy for me because I have a number of house plants and potted annuals around the same area; so, daily watering is a routine. This plant does MUCH better with LOTS of water. Also, Japanese Beetles love it as well as little green caterpillars that I find on the underside of the leaves. These worms can devastate a plant and kill it if the numbers are high enough. I usually wait for the first ones to arrive, just as the plant is beginning to make flower buds and then I spray the whole plant with Merit. One application keeps the bugs away for the rest of the season. I see the odd dead Japanese Bettle after that; but, never any live ones again.

The old flowers persist (dead), on the plant for 4 or 5 days. That can make it a bit untidy looking. However, if you have your plant in an easily accessible location, it takes literally only a few seconds to pull off the dead blooms from the day before, keeping the plant looking spectacular!

 

[TyroneGenade]

Thanks, John. I found some other sites they say it is suited for zones 5-9 but I will believe the site you link to instead and see what happens.

Thanks

 

[John M]

It's worth a try. They're not expensive and if it worked, that'd be great! Plus, lots of root hardy things will grow in a "too cold" zone if they're planted within a foot or two from a house foundation that has a basement. The soil near the house never gets down to what it gets down to out away from the house. I grow Bletilla striata that way. Out in the yard, they NEVER lived through winter. Up against the house foundation in a garden bed, they have been coming up every year for over 25 years!

 

[TyroneGenade]

Hi John, thanks for the reply and elaboration. I'm delighted that I might also be able to grow Bletilla out in the yard as well.

 

[Justin]

i planted a rose mallow this summer and the flowers were the size of dinner plates. can't wait to see what it does next year.

we have huge bushes of hardy rose of sharon along our house but it is mixed with poison ivy so i might have to get it all out.

 

[Migrant13]

That is an impressive plant and love the ruby red platters. Gotta get one and give it a try.

 

[John M]

Rose of Sharon are beautiful too....and their flowers are still a good size....about 5" or so across. However, they are also very late to get going in the spring. The bushes are woody and they survive the winter; so, you get a "dead-looking" bush to look at until well after everything else in the yard is well under way. That bugs me.

As far as the poison ivy goes....what about using a cheap small paintbrush to touch a drop of undiluted Round-up onto a leaf every couple feet or so. Being a vining plant, you should get a lot of die-back from just one drop on just one leaf because the poison will move through the plant to the roots and once the roots are dead, the top growth will die off. Once it's clear which leaves have been affected by the poison, just put a dab on some of the remaining healthy looking leaves....and repeat until it's all dead. You should be able to selectively kill off the Poison Ivy without harming the Rose of Sharron bushes, or risking your own health.

 

[Happypaphy7]

never knew hardy hibiscus comes in such intense and vivid color!

 

[Bjorn]

Tried some years back, but our climate is marginally too cool (particularly the summers I believe). Always wanted them!