Hibiscus leaves yellowing...

Need some input on my beautiful Hibiscus I bought. It was doing OK.
BUT--it came with White Flies. I have sprayed twice now
with the water/alcohol/dish soap mix. Seemed to work. Need to do it again...

Pretty soon--many of the leaves showed serious mite damage on the undersides.
Can't believe how fast this all happened!!

Now--there is an ongoing yellowing of leaves--which I remove.
This is making the plant look "leggy"...They may re-grow--I do not know.

What, in your opinions, is causing this yellowing??? The leaf damage is visible on all the
leaves' backs throughout the plant. Is the yellowing as a result of the damage to the leaves?
I am thinking--that that is the problem....
It is still blooming OK. but not as prolific as it should.

I want to hang on to this Hibiscus for next year--don't know HOW yet..
but will figure something out. It is SOOOO pretty!

Can these go totally dormant for the winter and come back the following summer???
Or--will I have to--somehow--keep it going in the house? I have NO bright, sunny windows.

Since ALL the leaves show this mite damage--will ALL the leaves yellow out?
Will they re-grow then?

Your opinion, please......Thank you. Gita

1--Blooming OK before
2--Blooms close-up. i LOVE these!
3--Showing general leaf yellowing
4--Yellow leaves--closer...
5--The damaged leaves a while back--when I first realized the problem.

Hibiscus rosa-sinensis becomes a very large shrub.
This plant is in too-small a container.
They appreciate plenty of water, but they still need oxygen in the root area, too. The soil needs to start drying out between watering. Not very much, but some. Yellowing leaves are often a sign the plant is staying too wet. Not always, though. As a leaf ages the plant starts recycling the nutrients so the leaf turns yellow. This is how the plant gets rid of leaves it does not need, or that are getting old. New leaves grow, mostly at the top and sides. Not so much deep inside.

To overwinter it I would buy a special light with the wavelengths that plants need. This plant should not lose all its leaves. It may grow slowly, so be somewhat dormant, but not bare. As it grows plant it in larger pots so it has plenty of room.
Prune it to encourage new growth lower down to try to keep it small enough to handle. It will get very large, too heavy for one person to move.
When this happens take cuttings and start over with a small plant.

Pest problems while the plant is outdoors can be handled with various sprays, washing off the leaves, misting (with water) or with pesticides in the soil. The plant takes up these pesticides and when the pest eats the plant or sucks the sap it gets poisoned. Products like this are often labeled 'Systemic' so something like 'Systemic Rose and Flower Care' might be used. Read the label on whatever is available to you to make sure Hibiscus are listed as safe.

Diana---Thanks.

Here in the east--Hibiscus is a houseplant--and has to be maintained as such.
I imagine where you live--it grows outside year round?

Much of what you mention has already be done...like the Systemic.
I still think the yellowing is in response to the damage from the White Flies.
They can destroy the bottom side of the leaves in a couple days.
You never mentioned this as the cause of the yellowing???

I just bought this Hibiscus. So--it has a ways to go. They come in 3 gal, black, nursery pots.
I transplanted it to a 14" pot and gave it a good dose of Systemic granules.

Thank you for the idea of using a light on it for the winter.

When winter is here--my house has about 100 plants all over. it is tricky to place
everything where it will semi-thrive. I have NO idea where this Hibiscus will end up.

So far--for the many years I ave been doing this with all my plants--nothing has ever died.

Here's what my LR looks like all winter... Gita

My Dining room end....

My back door in the kitchen--

My Bedroom----etc...etc....they are many other places as well...

Plants are EVERYWHERE!!!

Just thought you would like to see how hard it is for me to find a
location for any new plants..

I just think of all the Oxygen I get every day.....;o)

Gita

it isn't ever a good idea to use a pesticide on a newly re-potted plant. they are already under enough stress as it is.
as d said, over watering can cause yellowing but as she also said, it could just be the normal progression of old age on the leaves. hibiscus are heavy feeders but since you've already doused this plant with a systemic, i wouldn't go overboard on feed, just do a weak solution of a liquid fertilizer once a month.
my hibiscus get frozen back every couple of years and when that happens, i just trim them almost to the ground. they will re-sprout and come back from the roots so you should be able to do this also to maintain a size for bringing it inside for winter.
the mites you are talking about might be new whitefly larvae. since it came infested, i would severely cut it back and get rid of all the old leaves and whatever you have for mulch in the pot and give it a good soaking with cooking spray (like pam). that will kill whatever is still on it. place the pot in shade and water thoroughly. then just watch for new growth. when you see new growth forming, start watering again but not too much.
this is just what i would do, not set in stone.

I learned the hard way that some systemic pesticides like Bayer Advanced granules can't be used in pots. I hope the product you used is OK for potted plants.

I used Bonide Systemic Granules....hard to find any more--as many like
products have come out...

I use this on ALL my houseplants about 2-3 weeks before I bring them in for the winter.
None of them have shown any bad side effects--and i NEVER have any
bug issues in my house...even though my house is filled with close to 100 plants every year.

Diana and trackinsand---
While I appreciate your advice--it is not geared to Maryland or anywhere else in this area.
CA and FL has a totally different ways to deal with plants. Like cutting them to the ground?
Them growing into large shrubs?

Also--I do water as needed--as it shows a wilting if i do not. NO! Right noe it is in an
OK sized pot. It WAS in a smaller one and then I transplanted it. So--we are
good to go for at least one more year.

I DO like the idea of cutting it back, though--as I may be doing that before winter
comes so I can carry it over easier until next April.

Gita

well, not to get crazy over this but personally i think both mine and diana's advice was pretty much general advice for hibiscus no matter what state they're living in.
maybe i'm confused about exactly what your question was.
anyway, i do hope it recovers for you.

Please don't take all this wrong.

My original question had more to do with the effect of the white flies on the plant
and whether they would have caused the yellowing of the leaves and in what way.

I was not looking for general advice as I am a seasoned and knowledgeable gardener.
Some of both your advice was good--like cutting it back for the winter so as I do not
have to deal with overwintering a big, potted plant. Now--if I had a Sunroom........

No way in the World could I leave a Hibiscus outside for the winter.
We can have nasty winters here. This past winter was a record setter in freezing cold.
Worst we have had in 30 years!
Everyone lost their Rosemary--most of our Hydrangeas died to the roots--many trees
gave up the ghost---etc. etc..
So--some of your advice was not applicable to this zone.

However--I thank you for your suggestions. Gita
Anything remotely tropical would never have had a chance.

i never meant to imply that you could leave it out in winter...sorry if you took it that way. i just meant that they will come back if you decide to give it a severe pruning....and yes, the whitefly would be one reason for yellow leaves, especially if they are yellowing all the way up the plant and not just the older leaves. if you have lost a lot of leaves, even a nominal tip pruning will make it bushy again.

OH, my!!!
I have a confession to make,,,,,,,Just discovered something today....

My Hibiscus was quite dry--and I went to pick it up and take it to the back patio
when I realized I had NOT potted it into the bigger pot! The black pot was still there.

What I had done was bring it home. water it and put the black pot in the bigger pot
and surrounded it with mulch as a temporary "hold" as it was so miserably hot.

Then I forgot i did that........:o(

So--it was root-bound in that nursery pot--no wonder it was drying out so fast...

Quickly--I took it out, fixed some really nice soil up (MG Garden Soil--Partially composted
shreded leaves from last fall--and lots of Pro Mix--ALL mixed up) and took it out of the
black pot and put it in the new soil in the bigger pot. Soaked it good.

This surely should help....that soil I mix up feels so wonderful.....

Gita

lol