Evening star., 1932-04-23

Flowers have their ups and downs
the same as the length OF Women'S
dresses.
The hibiscus is now reveling in a
revival, after many years OF connne-
ment to swamps and the like.
A few gardeners. here and there
have grown this interesting cousin OF
the althea all the time. but most home
owners have been without specimens in
their yards
The hibiscus, like many other plants,
is now taken in hand by the hybridlzer,
with the result that specimens OF in
creased floral beauty have been
developed.
These, in turn, being played up" by
nurseries and seedmen throughout the
country, have caused interesting arti-
cleS to appear concerning them in
popular magazines.
So little is the hibiscus grown. how
ever, generally speaking, that even
these articles contain misinformation
One OF the best of these discussions
appearing in recent number OF
great WON; ! IS magazine, was illus
trated with most misleading photo
graph in colors.
Although the author had taken
pains. in his article, to state plainly
that the hibiscus blossoms, for all their
size and beauty, are not good for
cutting, a very fetching illustration in
colors showed a vaseful
They can be cut, Of course. and
placed in water, but they will not last
more than a half hour at the best; in
fact, the blossoms begin to fold up the
moment they are withdrawn from the
bush
1t is one of the poor points Of this
unusual specimen that its great flowers,
the largest of their type in the world,
last only about half day. Opening
at dawn, or thereabout-we have never
been able to catch the exact time. and
doubt II there. is any-the hibiscus
flowers are at their best for a few
hours only.
BY noon. if in full sun, they are
almost closed again and are good for
nothing thereafter. They fall by the
next day, but some gardeners make a
practice of pickin of the faded bios
SONS each evening.
The hibiscus, therefore. must not be
grown with the expectation that it will
furnish cut flowers. 1t will not. When
one stops to realize that it is a pure
wilding, for all its cultivation at the
hands Of plant breeders. he will stop
expecting cultivated qualities from it
1t is wild thing, and must be &C
cepted as such. The sort grown in
gardens is rose mallow, rather than
true marsh mallow. It's flowers are
Of an elementary type beloved by most
flower fanciers.
Their distinguishing feature is their
diameter, often described as Of dinner
plate size. This is true and people
who have never seen the hibiscus at
close range often gasp at the size of
the flowers, when seen for the FIST
time close up.
Hundreds of these plants grow along
the Speedway in Potomac Park. Large,
natural plantations are to be seen near
North Beach. Commonly these do not
grow such large blossoms, and the fact
that the beholder sees them in the
mass. from the side Of the road, and
while passing in a car, tends to render
the size of the flowers Of lesser i'm
portance.
Grown in the garden, however, and
carefully tended, especially in regard
TO sufficient water, the hibiscus will
grow enormous blooms for anybody
large, but in no sense coarse.
A curious feature of the modern gar
den varieties is that, although a water
Ao'Ale PAaliI, BiO"Hle VIII VIII It's
roots practically in water, it does not
repine when placed on dry very dry,
land, but increases the size of its tap
root and makes itself quite at home in
any ones garden.
Its habit of growth is somewhat
sprawly, which some gardeners profess
to dislike. but which really has
place in all but the most meticulously
cultivated places. A garden of rigid
formality, where not blade Of grass
was suffered out of place. would scarce
ly do for the hibiscus, but most gar
dens. whether large or small, have