Rose-of-Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus) – New Trends

“…Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus) is also called althea, shrub althea, Syrian ketmie, Syrian rose, and tree hollyhock.” writes Barbara Perry Lawton on p.48 in Hibiscus: Hardy and Tropical Plants for the Garden, 2004.

Landscape Uses for Modern Rose-of-Sharon Cultivars

No longer do landscape gardeners choose Rose-of-Sharon cultivars by color alone. Sterile brightly colored flowers on contemporary Rose-of-Sharon plants all but eliminate older invasive kinds from available collections. Up-to-date choices are excellent for planting in home gardens, parks, industrial complexes and malls.They function well as:

• Specimen plants,
• Small trees if trained to a single stem,
• Pruned hedges,
• Deciduous screens,
• Backgrounds for perennial borders, and
• Container plants.

National Arboretum Introductions

The four Rose-of-Sharon plants named after Greek goddesses lead the list of modern Hibiscus syriacus plants. These cultivars are triploid and essentially sterile, so produce few if any seeds. They have large, vividly colored and abundant flowers. Plants are erect and heavily branching.

Bred by the late Donald Egolf at the National Arboretum, Washington, DC, they offer a new look in landscape gardening. These sister plants bloom almost continuously from late summer – earlier in southern states – until frost. They have excellent, dark green, pollution-resistant foliage. They also tolerate extreme heat, drought, and poor soils but grow best in soils with moderate fertility and moisture. They bloom best in full sun.

• ‘Diana’ (introduced 1970) is 8′ tall x 7 to 8′ wide at maturity. Snow-white flowers with waxy petals with deeply ruffled edges remain open for more than one day. (Photo #1)
• ‘Minerva’ (1986) is 8 to 9′ tall x 6 to7′ wide. Lavender flowers develop dark red eyespots and traces of pink overlay toward centers and on reverse sides of petals;
• ‘Helene’ (1980) is about 8′ tall x 6 to 7′ wide. White, heavily ruffled flowers have red eyespots with the spot color radiating along veins to midpetal. Stamens (reproductive parts) may be present as twisted white petaloids. (Photo #2)
• ‘Aphrodite’ (1988) is about 9′ tall x 8′ wide. Petals are heavily ruffled and pink with prominent dark red eyespots. Spot color radiates along veins to midpetal.

The Chiffon™ Series

This series consists, currently, of three cultivars:

• ‘White Chiffon’™ (Photo #3)
• ‘Lavender Chiffon’™ and
• ‘Blue Chiffon’™.

Each of these hardy hibiscus cultivars develops an abundance of brightly colored, anemone-appearing flowers caused by petaloids arising from stamens and pistils (reproductive parts). These are strong growing plants with narrow branching. Their size at maturity is 8 to 12′ tall x 4 to 5′ wide. Bred and introduced beginning in the 1990s by Dr. Roderick Woods, Cambridge, England, Spring Meadow Nursery, Grand Haven, MI. is the U.S. series supplier.

The Satin® Series

Plants in the Satin® series have large single flowers and a unique bright color range. They are strong, healthy growers and their size at maturity is 8 to 12′ tall x 4 to 5′ wide.

This series represents the initial breeding efforts of Claude Bellion, Minier Nurseries, France and Rien Verweij, the Netherlands. More recently, Dr. Johan Van Huylenbroeck, Flemish DVP breeding station, Belgium introduced ‘Azurri Satin’® and Claude Bellion, Minier Nurseries, France hybridized ‘Rose Satin’®. Spring Meadow Nursery, Grand Haven, MI. is the U.S. series supplier.

• ‘Azurri Satin’® is the first seedless Rose-of-Sharon with large, single blue flower
• ‘Blue Satin’® is superior to the popular’ Blue Bird’ which is a weak, perhaps virus-infected, plant that is mixed up in the market. (Photo #4)
• ‘Blush Satin’® has large single, soft blushing pink flowers with a prominent red eye.
• ‘Rose Satin’® has rich deep true pink blooms with ruffled edges and prominent red centers.
• ‘Violet Satin’® has large single, deep violet-pink flowers adorned with a prominent red center.

A Dwarf Cultivar

‘Lil’ Kim’™ developed by Dr. Shim in South Korea and publicized as the first dwarf Rose-of-Sharon, produces dainty, white flowers punctuated by a showy red eye. Flowers last for three days instead of the typical one before falling off. Plants are hardy to USDA Hardiness Zone 5. (Photo #5)

Plants reach a mature height of 3-4 feet making them perfect for small patio and container gardens. They are also attractive in foundation groups or perennial borders, planted in groups or alone as a specimen, or as a low hedge.

Spring Meadow Nursery, Grand Haven, MI. is the U.S. supplier of this cultivar.

A Variegated-Leaf Cultivar

‘Sugar Tip’® has brightly variegated creamy-white and blue-green foliage. Unlike its closest competitor, weakly blooming, ‘Purpureus Variegatus,’ it produces an abundance of clear pink, double flowers that do not make seeds. Its mature size is 8 to 12′ tall x 3 to 5′ feet wide.

Bred by Sharon Gerlt of Independence, Mo, ‘Sugar Tip’® is supplied in the U.S. by Spring Meadow Nursery, Grand Haven, MI.