Now’s the time to Plant Hardy Hibiscus for Summer Color

 

If you’re dreaming of a bold, low-maintenance showstopper in your summer garden, hardy hibiscus (Hibiscus x moscheutos) delivers on every front. From mid-summer through the first frost, these statuesque perennials unfurl giant, saucer-sized blooms in hues ranging from creamy white and soft pink to vibrant red, instantly transforming borders and beds into a tropical masterpiece. Tough enough to shrug off winter’s chill yet heat-tolerant through steamy summers, hardy hibiscus return year after year with dramatic foliage and blossoms that steal the spotlight when many other plants are winding down. 

It’s important to note that hardy hibiscus differs from tropical hibiscus (rosa-sinensis) which is not hardy in our zone. Flowers and foliage are similar, but tropical hibiscus won’t survive our winters.

Tropical hibiscus such as Tradewinds™ Sunny Wind are colorful additions to the patio and deck during the summer, and they must be moved indoors when the weather turns cold.     

  

Once established, standard hardy hibiscus can easily grow to 6’ high and 6’ across so keep this in mind when you’re choosing a planting site. If you don’t have room for a full-sized plant, there are dwarf varieties that only get about 3’ tall and 3’ wide.  

  

Hardy hibiscus like their place in the sun, so select a site in the garden where they’ll get as much sun as possible. They can be grown in partial shade, such as an East-facing location, but the flower production may not be as great.   

  

Hardy hibiscus like well drained soils, so prepare the planting site by adding locally produced soil amendments, such as Earth Essentials Sheep, Peat and Compost to your existing soil at the rate of about 50:50. Add some Root Stimulator to the planting hole to ensure good root production. Planted now, you should get flowers this season.   

  

Hardy hibiscus flowers only last a day, but the flower production will go on all season, right up to the first frost. In our area, the canes will die back after the first hard frost. Once this happens, cut the canes to the ground.   

  

Around Thanksgiving, apply a two-to-three-inch layer of mulch. This will help keep the ground stable and retain moisture. Water the root ball occasionally during the winter.   

  

Hardy hibiscus plants are among the last to emerge in the spring, so give them plenty of time. Too often, people think the plant has died over the winter when in fact it's still alive, just dormant and slow to make an appearance.  

  "Berry Awesome"

"Blackberry Merlot"

"Cookies and Cream"

"Holy Grail"  

  

Planting hardy hibiscus will add unique color to your garden landscape for many seasons to come.   

 

 

 

How to Protect your Tomato Crop with good Cultural Practices

 

When it comes to growing tomatoes, many factors can influence fruit quality and production. Tomato plants do best when the daytime temperatures are between 65-degrees and 85-degrees Fahrenheit. When the daytime temperatures are consistently above 90-degrees Fahrenheit, growth slows down, blossom set stops, existing fruit may fall, and leaves start to curl.    

 

Your plants can still be productive if you practice good watering habits, remove weeds quickly, watch for and respond to diseases and insect activity, utilize mulch around the base of the plant, provide shade and avoid fertilizing when the temperatures are above 90-degrees Fahrenheit.  

 

Best practices for watering tomatoes include a regular deep, thorough soaking at the base of the plant. Water slowly, allowing the water to soak in five or six inches. Avoid overhead watering, as this can cause disease problems. Water in the early morning, before eight.   

 

Consistent moisture is critical, whether you’re growing tomatoes in beds or pots.  Blossom end rot is one of the most common problems with tomatoes.  It appears as a dry, leather-like patch at the base of the fruit. This condition happens because of inconsistent watering, which results in an uneven uptake of calcium. In addition to assuring a consistent source of water, a ready-to-spray calcium supplement can be applied directly to the fruit and leaves, using ferti•lome Yield Booster. 

 

Concentrated Calcium is also available and can be applied as spray or added to the soil. Another option is to fertilize using organic fertilizers that contain calcium.  

Speaking of fertilizing, tomatoes need nutrients to produce the best fruit consistently. Happy Frog Tomato and Vegetable is formulated for all types of vegetables and tomato varieties. It features an NPK ratio of 5-7-3, providing essential nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium to support plant growth during both vegetative and flowering stages.  

This fertilizer also contains calcium which helps prevent blossom end rot and builds stronger cell walls, boosting the plant's ability to resist disease. Mycorrhizal fungi are included to help increase root efficiency. 

 

Other problems encountered at this time of year include catfacing, zippering, blight, and insects. 

When a tomato is malformed with misshaped groves, it’s called catfacing. Catfacing causes puckered, lumpy, or deeply scarred fruit, usually on the blossom end. It’s most common in large-fruited heirlooms like ‘Brandywine’ or ‘Beefsteak’. Primary causes include cool temperatures during flowering, excess nitrogen, heavy pruning, or herbicide exposure as well as genetics. 

 

Zippering appears as thin, brown scars running from the stem to the blossom end—like a zipper. Primary causes include flower parts sticking to the fruit during development, as well as poor pollination. Prevention tips: Gently shake plants to aid pollination and use mulch to stabilize soil moisture and temperature. 

 

Two major insects to watch for now include tomato horn worm and Western Flower Thrip. If you notice a sudden defoliation of your plant, accompanied by black droppings on the leaves, most likely there’s a tomato horn worm eating its way through your plants.

They’re very well camouflaged, but if you look carefully, you can find them and pick them off. Organic insecticides containing Bacillus thuringiensis (subspecies kurstaki) can be used safely and effectively to control horn worms.  

 

If you notice leaves starting to curl, it’s often in response to the stress of high temperatures.  The plant does this to reduce the surface area and slow down the loss of moisture.  

 

Leaf curl can also be the result of insect activity. If you start seeing curling leaves and the fruit on your plant takes on a blotchy appearance, it’s almost certain your plants have Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus, a disease vectored by Western Flower Thrip. Spinosad is a good choice to control Western Flower Thrip. Treating the area under the plant with dusting Sulfur also deters Western Flower Thrip.  

 

Leaves can also curl up in response to herbicide damage, especially if the chemical 2-4d was used.  Even the slightest amount of weed control products drifting onto tomato plants can cause cupping, twisting and distortion of the foliage. If this happens, prune off the damaged foliage. The plant will often recover. 

When it comes to leaf blight on tomatoes, Rotate Solanaceae crops (tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, potatoes) every year to reduce soil-borne inoculum. Choose disease-tolerant or resistant cultivars. Stake or trellis plants to improve air flow and reduce leaf-to-soil contact. Water at the base of the plant and avoid overhead watering. Clean up and discard all plant debris at season’s end; don’t compost infected material.  

 

Adding two to three inches of organic mulch around the base of the plant will stabilize the ground, minimize moisture loss, and reduce the chances of blight. Soil Pep is a good choice because it can also be used to improve the soil your tomato plants are growing in.  

 

Providing your plants with some shade will also help improve yields. When temperatures get above eighty-five to ninety degrees Fahrenheit, tomatoes on the vine won’t ripen. Temperatures this high will retard or prevent the production of the red pigment lycopene. Covering them with shade cloth will reduce the temperature and encourage fruit to set, as well as ripen.

 

When it comes to growing tomatoes, many factors can influence fruit quality and production. If you’re not sure what’s going on in your garden, bring a sample to The Flower Bin Diagnostic Center. We’ll figure out what’s going on and come up with solutions that will ensure you know what to do to get the best from your tomato plants.