The first one is my hardy hib this year (I don't have the correct species type/name). I have two, and as beautiful as they are, I'm excited that I'll have more next year! :biggrin: I also ordered 6 new tropical hibs from a nursery in Florida that just arrived. Those will have to live in the greenhouse over winter though.

The second pic is my hib coccineus (Scarlet Mallow) that I have growing in one of the ponds. I'm waiting for the seed pods to dry on the plant before collecting those as well.

:yay:

:wink:

I am planing to start a tropical looking planting around my pool. I wonder what plants and especially which plant supliers local people like. I realize I can save a lot of money buying bulbs, seeds, tubers, ..etc online or mail order as opposed to buying already started plants.

The first one is my hardy hib this year (I don't have the correct species type/name). I have two, and as beautiful as they are, I'm excited that I'll have more next year! :biggrin: I also ordered 6 new tropical hibs from a nursery in Florida that just arrived. Those will have to live in the greenhouse over winter though.

The second pic is my hib coccineus (Scarlet Mallow) that I have growing in one of the ponds. I'm waiting for the seed pods to dry on the plant before collecting those as well.


Can you take the dry seeds and make new plants?

I am planing to start a tropical looking planting around my pool. I wonder what plants and especially which plant supliers local people like. I realize I can save a lot of money buying bulbs, seeds, tubers, ..etc online or mail order as opposed to buying already started plants.

Check out a website called davesgarden.com. There is a ton of info on various plants (in fact, I challenge you to find one that isn't covered on there in some way, shape or form). If you get a membership to the forums, they have all kinds of plant/seed/cutting swaps or you can buy them directly from the person. That would be a great (and very inexpensive) way to get a good variety of what you'd like. I've been on there for about 6 months now, and visit that site daily, as it's been a plethora of information for me related to my koi poinds, plants, etc. :yay: :yay:

Also, I'm a Plant Delights Nursery, Inc. - Hosta and Exotic Perennials (http://www.plantdelights.com) junkie! They have a great supply of tropical plants (many of mine have come from there). They do mail order, and they guarantee their plants (with proper care, of course). They have their next open house in a couple weeks, and their tropical gardens will be at their peak, so I'm excited to pay them another visit.

Can you take the dry seeds and make new plants?

But of course, and I plan to! :biggrin: I've collected seeds from both varieties of hibs I already had, but the other 6 I bought are tropicals (meaning they'll need to reside in the greenhouse over winter). They just have a much more intricate and beautiful color variation among their blooms, but are not necessarily winter-hardy in my zone (8A). I bought them from Tried And True (http://www.triedandtruehibiscus.com) when they had their August special running. 6 plants w/shipping & handling was only about $45. :yay: