hibiscus in portland oregon?

I used to live in the south and miss my hibiscus. I heard recently there are hardy ones that will grow in the PNW. Does anyone have any suggestions? thanks

Oh yes, Rose of Sharon, or Althea http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/788/index.html grows very well here. I have a white one with red in the middle that just thrives in our climate, but I really love the purple ones. it seems like everyone in my neighborhood has one.

Hi Anne,
Joie is right Rose of Sharon is beautiful. I have 2 of them, one is called Minerva and it looks so much more exotic than my other one. It's still very young but is always loaded with blooms and I can hardly wait to see it full grown.

Another worth consideration is the Lord Baltimore hibiscus - I have grown it here - and what an incredible plant ...

I am having trouble getting any links to work here - so Google for the images - 4 inches across- vibrant red! It can be found here on DG - but even that link doesn't work right now.

I am going to try again

http://davesgarden.com/pf/showimage/86630/

OK - that is more like it!

Thanks, everyone, for your great replies! I will start looking for a place to buy them right away. Maybe I will try that POPPA's nursery I have heard so much about lately.

I found some great plants at that nursery.

I just learned that you can find their inventory online: http://poppainc.org/inventory.aspx

This message was edited May 29, 2006 6:37 PM

Too bad I have to wait until Thursday to go! Is everything they sell a gallon or larger? I could use some small (cheap) annuals to fill in my many blank spots.

i like the NW palms forum. here's a thread on hibiscus in the PNW:
http://www.cloudforest.com/northwest/forum/2892.html

alyogyne heugelii might be a good option, too.

-ming