When should you trim a hibiscus plant?

My plant is growing too tall for the location. I was always told not to trim blooming plants before the first cold front, but this one is just too tall. If I do trim it now, will I cause it to die?

When should you trim a hibiscus plant?
the best time to trim is during the growing season -late spring or early summer.
Reply:Trim hibiscus lightly as winter approaches








Neil Sperry


GARDENER'S MAILBAG


Dear Neil: I am growing hardy hibiscus for the first time. I notice that the plants look like they have frozen. Is that normal? Is there anything I should do for them over the next couple of months?





A: Trim off all the dead tissues. That’s exactly the way they operate. They will send up new shoots next season, and each of those will be topped with the huge, showy flowers. Hardy hibiscus die to the ground every fall. In fact, the plants can get rather tacky by early fall. You may want to trim them lightly as they start to lose leaves, then back to within 3 or 4 inches of the soil line by the time of the first hard freeze. Leave the stem stubble in place to alert you not to dig where they’re growing. They will be very late in sending up their new shoots in the spring, so don’t be alarmed.
Reply:I live in Florida and mine grows and blooms all year long...





Perhaps you could "lightly" trim only the intrusive branches. Once it has dropped all its leaves, you COULD trim it back and shape it.
Reply:Pruning is used to shape future growth, invigorate old plants, manage plant size and get rid of diseased and dead wood. While the tropical hibiscus can be pruned any time, probably the ideal is the earliest where the resulting tender new growth will be safe from cold damage*. For shaping purposes, some growers will prune the longest third of the branches and return in 4 to 6 weeks and prune the next longest third. Only sharp, clean shears should be used. A clean cut should be just above and angled down and away from an "eye" or node. (A node is the junction of a leaf and the stem. There is a small bud in this junction that is activated after pruning.) Cutting above outward pointing "eyes" will encourage growth in that direction. The new growth resulting from pruning invigorates the plant and will provide a source for many new blooms.





Another pruning idea... To keep getting blooms, think of your plant as having three sides. Prune one side at a time so that the other two sides can still produce blooms. Return in 4 to 6 weeks and prune the next side and so on.





*Temperatures of 35 to 40F can sometimes cause injury to tender new growth. Temperatures that are just below freezing for several hours can cause severe damage. The longer these tropical plants have to endure these temperatures, the greater the risk. Trapping ground heat by covering the plants can prevent damage. Using low nitrogen fertilizers as fall approaches helps to make them a little more resistant to the cold.
Reply:If it's a perennial hibiscus, you can go ahead and take it down. It's NOT going to hurt it! Obviously you won't be getting any more flowers..but you can also just take it down where the next bunch of buds are...where I live the hibiscus are done flowering for the most part. Come winter when it turns brown, chop the stalks all the way to the ground. Then, maybe you should consider transplanting it to a spot where it has no limits on it's growth.





Good luck

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