I bought a beautiful Hibiscus from Wal-Mart the other day. I'm going to leave it in the container (may eventually put it in a larger container). How do you care for Hibiscus? I see some of the flowers have closed up....does that mean those are finished blooming and will fall off? I've never had a plant like this and don't know the first thing about caring for it:) Do I feed it?
Thanks! Angie
Hibiscus is a one-day flower. They don't like to be over-watered. Good organic soil, lots of sun.
The blooms of a few varieties will last 2 or 3 days even during the summer, but one day is typical for most. Depending on your location, they may prefer some shade during part of the day or they'll nearly stop blooming during the hottest part of the summer -- especially here in Florida.
For more guidance on tropical hibiscus, visit
the next time you ever purchase a plant, especially a tropical plant, from any store like walmart or kmart, you MUST examine the underleaves for tiny white specks. if you nudge a speck, you'll find that it can fly. these buggers are called, amazingly enough, whitefly and they suck the sap of the plant through the veins in the leaves and they spread like crazy!!
another bug-venture you will need to keep an eye on is spidermite. if you have ANY KIND of evergreen growing within 200 feet of your house, your plant, especially hibiscus, is almost certain to get tiny red or black buggers and the easiest way to spot them is to look for webbing material. if you DO see webbing, hold the plant up to the light and very carefully examine the web threads for teeny critters moving up and down. again, these buggers are very hungry and can suck a poor plant out of its sap within a short time.
to replant your hibiscus, which is a plant which likes moist soil BUT NOT WET, it's best to use at least 1/3 of the replacement soil with peat moss and 1/3 vermiculite and 1/3 white lava rock....OR i would highly suggest, since you already shop at walmart, for you to buy their blend which is very similar to the commercial mixes which have plant food within them.
you must be loving to your plant...talk to him (or her), play music for him and get him a friend. if you like hibiscus, i highly suggest the VERY BEST place to buy the most beautiful hibiscus you'll ever see is at
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good luck with your new baby.
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