Dinner Plate Hibiscus - Hibiscus moscheutos

(Disco Belle Pink Hibiscus - Johnsen Landscapes & Pools)

The Earth Laughs in Flowers - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Want your garden to laugh? Giggling with pink, red, and white? Then Hibiscus moscheutos or Swamp-rose Mallow is the answer for you!
  

(Lord Baltimore Hibiscus - Spring Hill Nursery)

 
My personal name for them is Dinner Plate Hibiscus (a better moniker, in my humble opinion) since the blossoms can be almost 9" across.

Hibiscus moscheutos is a tall, cold-hardy perennial with huge flowers that is a native to wetlands and riversides of southeastern United States from Texas to the north Atlantic states. It naturally grows in large colonies.

(Lady Baltimore Hibiscus)

You can grow Hibiscus moscheutos easily in average to wet soils in full sun. (Do not allow them to dry out!)  Good air circulation is important for preventing potential diseases and they should be protected from wind. Deadheading is essential. Cut back stems to approximately 3-4" in late fall.

(Johnsen Landscapes & Pools - Disco Belle)

The display of this magnificent, 4' - 6'  high plant from mid July - September is stunning!

Planted in groups behind other shorter plants is best. I have used them in foundation plantings, along fences and in raised planters. They add a tropical feel to any setting and butterflies love it! Ideal for hedges, screens, borders and cottage gardens. They are unbeatable for the late summer garden (regular fertilizing helps) and they come back every year.

What could be better? Plant Now!

 

(Jan Johnsen - that is 'Blue Shag' White Pine in front)