It may not be necessary for all hibiscus species to remove spent flowers, but it can make shrubs look better and make flowering last longer.
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Hibiscus shrubs are striking additions to any garden border. Learn how to grow hibiscus in your backyard to add color and impact. Hibiscus is known for producing lots of bright flowers, which will appeal to gardeners looking for tropical garden ideas.
Hibiscus shrubs come in a wide range of colors, from deep purple to white and almost every color in between. There is a plant for every taste. On top of that, there are hardy and tender types of hibiscus, so most gardeners can find one that will do well in their yard no matter the climate, location, or US hardiness zone.
Hibiscus shrubs are known for being easy to grow, but it’s not always clear if these tropical-looking plants need to be deadheaded after the flowers fade. Professional gardeners talk about whether or not to deadhead hibiscus flowers and, if so, how to best get rid of the old flowers.
Hibiscus rosa-sinensis Brilliant is a tropical shrub with stunning red blooms( credit: Getty s/David C Tomlinson)
With their huge, vibrant blooms, hibiscus bring a touch of the tropics wherever they grow As a proud hibiscus owner, you likely look forward to those colorful summer flowers all year long. But once those blooms begin to fade, should you deadhead the spent flowers? While not strictly necessary, deadheading your hibiscus can boost flower production and keep your plant looking its best Here’s everything you need to know about deadheading hibiscus plants.
What is Deadheading?
Deadheading refers to the act of removing spent blooms from plants by snipping or pinching them off. It’s done for several key reasons:
- Promotes more blooms by redirecting energy to new buds
- Improves appearance by removing droopy, faded flowers
- Prevents self-seeding in some plants
Should You Deadhead Hibiscus Plants?
Deadheading isn’t essential for hibiscus health, but it offers benefits:
- More prolific blooming when energy goes to new buds, not seeds
- Eliminates unsightly spent flowers
- Prolongs overall bloom period
- Larger, healthier flowers form when crowded deadheads removed
- Prevents messy reseeding
So while not mandatory, deadheading is great for maximizing hibiscus flowers. Even if you only deadhead occasionally, you’ll notice a difference in blooms.
When to Deadhead Hibiscus
Timing is important when deadheading hibiscus
- Deadhead in summer during peak blooming season
- Remove spent blooms as soon as flowers fade or wilt
- Deadhead every 3-4 days for best results
- Avoid damaging new buds right beside old blooms
Deadheading too early means removing buds that may still bloom. But leaving spent blooms too long means missing the chance to redirect energy. Frequent deadheading prevents overcrowding.
How to Deadhead Hibiscus Plants
Deadheading hibiscus requires caution to avoid damaging tender new buds:
- Use your thumb and forefinger to pinch off spent blooms
- Alternatively, use clean, sharp pruners to snip deadheads off
- Avoid cutting other stems and buds beside dead blooms
- Make cuts just below the spent flower head
- Remove debris from around buds for optimal sunlight
Take care when deadheading not to damage fresh buds that will produce the next round of flowers.
Tips to Get More Hibiscus Blooms
In addition to deadheading, here are more tips to maximize hibiscus blooms:
- Give plants a light trim when flowering starts slowing to encourage new growth
- Prune back by 25% early in the season for fuller shape and more branching
- Apply fertilizer when buds start swelling for strongest blooms
- Plant in a sunny, warm location with well-drained soil
- Water frequently during hot, dry periods
What Happens if You Don’t Deadhead Hibiscus?
You’ll still get flowers even if you skip deadheading. However, you may notice:
- Slightly fewer blooms overall
- Smaller flower size due to crowding
- More dropped petals and seeds
- Leggy, stretched out appearance
- Overgrown, tangled look late in season
Lack of deadheading won’t kill your plant. But for best flower production and visual appeal, it’s recommended.
Do Hibiscus Plants Need Other Pruning?
Pruning hibiscus plants annually in late winter or early spring is ideal. It stimulates bushy new growth that leads to prolific summer blooming.
Here are some hibiscus pruning tips:
- Prune 2-3 weeks after last frost when buds begin to swell
- Remove up to 25% of prior year’s growth
- Shape and thin plant to improve air circulation
- Prune out dead or damaged stems
- Cut just above nodes where new stems will emerge
Avoid heavy pruning during peak summer bloom time. Only deadhead then so you don’t lose flowers.
Can You Hard Prune Overgrown Hibiscus?
If your hibiscus plant is very overgrown and leggy, hard pruning is an option:
- Hard pruning means cutting back more than 50% of growth
- Encourages bushy regrowth from the bottom
- Best done in early spring before buds set
- Limit to once every 2-3 years
- Results in temporarily reduced blooms
- Follow up with frequent deadheading in subsequent seasons
For quick reshaping of an unruly plant, hard pruning is effective. But avoid making it an annual habit.
Deadheading Hibiscus in Pots
Container grown hibiscus also benefit from deadheading. With limited root space, removing spent blooms helps maximize flowers.
Follow these tips for container hibiscus:
- Use finger pinching or snipping shears to remove deadheads
- Deadhead frequently to prevent crowding
- Apply water-soluble fertilizer monthly to nourish buds
- Prune leggy growth in early spring to shape plant
- Repot annually in early spring to provide room for growth
Give container hibiscus ideal drainage and prevent waterlogged soil.
The Takeaway on Deadheading Hibiscus
While not strictly necessary, deadheading spent blooms can make a big difference in the number and quality of flowers your hibiscus produces. Implement this simple practice during peak bloom time, and you’ll be rewarded with vibrant blossoms all season long. When paired with proper care and occasional corrective pruning, deadheading helps hibiscus plants thrive and look their best.
Hibiscus species that can benefit from deadheading
Hibiscus rosa-sinensis shrubs can benefit from regular deadheading as flowers fade( credit: Getty s/Penpak Ngamsathain)
When I am looking for plants for both my garden center and my home, I look for beautiful and beneficial plants, says Tricia Hunt, tropical plant expert and owner of Millstone Plant Nursery, and tropical hibiscus are perfectly suited to the job.
In cooler areas, they can be grown instead, as long as they are kept safe during the winter. Hence, learning how to winterize hibiscus is important.
Tricia also says that tropical, or tender, hibiscus species bloom from spring and summer all the way through fall. If you take good care of these beautiful shrubs during the growing season, they will give you a unique color that no other plant can match.
In the spring and summer, deadheading tropical hibiscus plants can help them grow more beautiful flowers. If you do this regularly, your plant will keep producing them.
If you live in a warmer area, you might be able to grow tropical hibiscus plants in the ground. But for most people, growing them in containers is the best option. It will be easier to cut back tropical hibiscus shrubs that are grown in pots because they won’t be able to grow as big. A ladder might be needed to reach bigger shrubs in the ground, but don’t worry about cutting off every last faded flower.
The goal is to have as many faded blooms as possible so that the plant doesn’t waste energy making seeds. The shrub will then continue to produce more and more flowers. Even though you should get rid of as many faded blooms as you can to keep the bush looking nice and flowering, don’t worry if you can’t reach all of them.
Deadheading tropical hibiscus blooms – Hibiscus rosa-sinensis – is best done every 3 to 5 days. Deadheading hibiscus flowers often is important during the growing season because many of the blooms will open and fade in just one to two days. You can cut off the faded flowers and seed pods at the base of the bush with clean, sharp secateurs, or you can just twist and pull the flowers off of the bush with your hands.
Tricia is the owner and operator of Millstone Market & Nursery, located in the heart of Germantown, Tennessee. Tricia has grown and used moss for several years, appreciating the utility of this green groundcover. Felco Pruning Shears.
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Hibiscus species that do not require deadheading
Rose of Sharon, Hibiscus syriacus, is a hardy plant that doesn’t need to be deadheaded (image: Getty s/annick vanderschelden).
As a general rule, most hardy and native hibiscus shrubs do not require deadheading. Getting rid of spent blooms can help shrubs stay healthy and look their best, but it doesn’t usually lead to a second flush of blooms for these species.
The native Hibiscus moscheutos, also known as the swamp rose mallow, and the Asian native Hibiscus syriacus, also known as the rose of Sharon, are both in this group. Stay out of these hardy plants’ way this year; the blooms will fall off on their own. As we already said, many of these hardy varieties can get big when grown in the ground, so it’s also not a good idea to remove the flowers every other day while they’re growing.
Certain hardy and native hibiscus varieties and species are great landscaping plants that can be used as hedging or as specimen shrubs, says Tatiana Anderson, tropical plant expert and co-founder of Top Tropicals. These plants can undergo heavy pruning during the fall and winter to maintain a specific shape.
Gardeners should not remove the flower heads from these shrubs. Instead, they should leave them alone and enjoy the beauty of the seedheads all summer long. Many people might be afraid that some of the more aggressive species will set seed, but Tatiana says that this won’t happen if you prune in late fall and winter, before the hibiscus seeds have spread.
So, it’s important to know how to prune hibiscus and rose of Sharon. Also, taking care of your shrubs in the fall and winter will pay off. As a general rule, I would only remove the flower buds from native or hardy hibiscus shrubs that are grown in pots, where it is easy to keep the plant looking nice. For bigger shrubs grown in the ground, don’t bother with deadheading. Instead, prune your shrub in the fall and winter to shape it and get rid of the seedheads.
Tatiana Anderson is the co-owner and co-founder of Top Tropicals, based in Fort Myers, Florida. Top Tropicals grow and sell a whole range of flowering and fruiting tropical plants.
Deadheading Hibiscus
FAQ
How do I keep my hibiscus blooming?
Do hibiscus flowers fall off after blooming?
What happens if you don’t prune hibiscus?
Do hibiscus flowers need to be deadheaded?
Deadheading, the process of removing fading flowers, can improve the appearance of the plant and prevent reseeding. According to information about hibiscus flowers, deadheading hibiscus is not a necessary part of hibiscus flower care. This is true for tropical hibiscus flowers, for rose of Sharon and for other types of hibiscus family blooms.
What should I do after deadheading a hibiscus?
After deadheading a hibiscus, it is important to follow some care guidelines to ensure the plant’s health and encourage further blooming. Here are the detailed steps to follow: Remove spent flowers: Deadheading involves removing the faded or spent flowers from the hibiscus plant.
How often should you Deadhead a hibiscus plant?
Hibiscus blooms can open and fade within 24 to 48 hours, and so for those tropical shrubs that are grown in containers, deadheading for 5 minutes every other day can help to maintain an attractive and vibrant hibiscus plant. Using clean, sharp tools, or by using your hands, simply remove the spent flowers and seedpods as needed.
Does deadheading Hibiscus eat up time?
Deadheading a heavy bloomer such as hibiscus can eat up time during a single growing season. As the plant is self-cleaning, many gardeners thus argue that the time spent deadheading could be used far more effectively elsewhere in the garden.