Today I finished off the final locations for my annuals other than one section of the gardens that are getting completely re-done.

I've only got about 200 left out of a grand total of over 2600.

I did start 20 southern belle hibiscus in pots today (my wife was surprised that I'm trying to grow perennials), I want to use them in the new bed and in the cul-de-sac. About $10 worth of seed; hopefully they'll all germinate. A lot cheaper than buying them at the nursery in 4 weeks. Supposedly they can take up to 4 weeks to germinate, I pre-soaked them overnight.

I got these from Park Seeds, I have bought from Harris too. It is late, but we have a long growing season on LI, so I think they'll be ok. They
Are probably going to blooming late September, which is fine.

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I love Parks Seed, and I've had great luck with them! Most of what I got came from there.

Those dumb little sunflower seeds that looked like nuthin' are now producing their own lovely little sunflowers. Where that one was before there are now four. The first I just dead-headed, and the head is filled with (immature) seeds!

I'll have to let a few go to seed late in the summer and save them to see if they're viable.

Same as annuals, really. Keep moist, not wet. Good light during growth. Follow the directions on the package.

29 days and not one has germinated. Pots have been kept moist, never dried out and temps have been good. Package does say 3-4 weeks, but this is getting frustrating.

simpson wrote:Wow that is crazy. Do you have then in the sun or inside? What are you trying to grow?

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Part Sun. Perennial Hibiscus.

Hibiscus? Ouch. I hate to ask this...but did you nick the seed? It's almost required for those.

No, I was afraid to. They have to germinate in the wild without the nick...

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Quite rarely. Hibiscus are prolific seeders, and accept a very low germination rate. They're like oak or pine trees in that regard, with only a very few seeds ever managing to sprout. It's like fish having hundreds of eggs in the hopes of getting two or three to adulthood!

It should still work, but water takes forever to penetrate the seed coat. You can sometimes fake it a bit by using a touch of diluted kelp (such as in the BL Kelp Help). Use 1 tsp of the mixed stuff per quart and use that to water, or spray atop the soil surface gently.

Unnicked hibiscus seeds will germinate slowly, and very irregularly. Warmth there will help, with daytime temps around 80 being optimal, nights falling to 70 or so.

MorpheusPA wrote:Quite rarely. Hibiscus are prolific seeders, and accept a very low germination rate. They're like oak or pine trees in that regard, with only a very few seeds ever managing to sprout. It's like fish having hundreds of eggs in the hopes of getting two or three to adulthood!

It should still work, but water takes forever to penetrate the seed coat. You can sometimes fake it a bit by using a touch of diluted kelp (such as in the BL Kelp Help). Use 1 tsp of the mixed stuff per quart and use that to water, or spray atop the soil surface gently.

Unnicked hibiscus seeds will germinate slowly, and very irregularly. Warmth there will help, with daytime temps around 80 being optimal, nights falling to 70 or so.

I gave up after 6 weeks and bought a bunch off someone on eBay for between $5 and $9 a plant.

Sensible. Hibiscus are harder than cleome, and I struggled with cleome. I can't give them the same environment they get outdoors very easily when sprouting, plus I'm rushing them by several months.

I planted them today; the plants arrived in two days are were in beautiful shape. I ripped out the blue mist shrubs in the cul-de-sac I maintain and planted each 4.5 pot/plant in a nice 18-24" hole amended with compost, alfalfa pellets and healthy start. The guy I bought them from is in Iowa and only sells plants that have made it through a winter, so I'm optimistic these will do well. Each was about 12 inches tall. They should love this circle; nice and warm with a ton of sun.

They probably won't have an issue in winter, they have plenty of time to develop. If really windy or cold there or something, a burlap wrap might not be an awful idea. But it's kind of unattractive.

It's easier just to mulch heavily and if the tops die half the time they re-sprout from the roots anyway.