Hibiscue tiliaceus (from cuttings to 35-40 feet in 5 years)

[Walt]

The first time I ever saw one of these trees (from a distance) many years ago, I first thought they were a sea grape until I examined a leaf more closely. I had no idea what kind of tree it was so I took a photo of it and posted it here. That was probably well over 10 years ago. Somebody here identified the tree for me.

Back in June of 2011 I took some cuttings from a local Hibiscus tiliaceaus tree (I realize I'm mispronouncing the species in the video. I've since go the pronunciation correct), and rooted some cuttings. I guess I grew the cuttings for a year or so, then I planted them.  Since then they have grown fairly fast. I finally got my first flowers on the trees in 2015. Before these trees I used to have a variegated form of Hibiscus tiliaceus a member of PalmTalk generously gave me. However, after getting partially frozen back three winters in a row it died. I don't know if the variegated variety is less cold hardy or not. The trees in my video below have never been frozen back. They are growing in a slightly warmer area of my property, strategically planted there for that purpose (less chance of getting frost/cold damage). I'm looking forward to seeing just how big and spreading these trees will be one day.

 

[tropicbreeze]

A while back it was renamed Talipariti tiliaceum. There's a red form, T. tiliaceum 'Rubrum' that's become very popular over the past several years. The leaves are a dark reddish colour but the flowers much the same as the ordinary form.

[Walt]

18 hours ago, tropicbreeze said:

A while back it was renamed Talipariti tiliaceum. There's a red form, T. tiliaceum 'Rubrum' that's become very popular over the past several years. The leaves are a dark reddish colour but the flowers much the same as the ordinary form.

Thanks for that info. as I was unaware the genus and species had changed. The T. tiliacum 'Rubrum' sounds interesting. If I ever come across a small one I will get it, as my property needs more color.

[Eric in Orlando]

I see on GRIN and Kew's Plant List it has been changed back to Hibiscus tiliaceus. 

[Jerry@TreeZoo]

On 12/12/2016, 9:04:41, Walt said:

I'm looking forward to seeing just how big and spreading these trees will be one day.

Be careful what you ask for.  They used to plant these on the Turnpike, back in the day.  I have seen them 30' tall and 100' wide, growing in a shrub form with the canopy right on the ground.

[Walt]

9 hours ago, Jerry@TreeZoo said:

Be careful what you ask for.  They used to plant these on the Turnpike, back in the day.  I have seen them 30' tall and 100' wide, growing in a shrub form with the canopy right on the ground.

I doubt that will ever be the case for me, as I expect them to get frozen back now and then. I noted that some H. tiliaceus were partially frozen back here by the 11-day cold spell in December of 2010. But like many species of ficus, they came back strong. I believe these trees can get big and spreading if never frozen back. The tree I got my cuttings from was fairly big when I first saw it. The below photo I took in 2002. At that time I had no idea what kind of tree it was, but it was interesting to me. Somebody here at this forum (whatever it was called back then) identified it for me. It may have been you.

This tree is located at a girls 4H camp (Camp Cloverleaf) on Cloverleaf Road, just north of Lake Placid. It's growing near the S. E. end of a lake, which is a solid zone 10 location. This camp has the biggest Ficus elastica and F. microcarpa trees I've seen in Highlands County.

The above photo is the original tree I got my cuttings from in June of 2011 (although this photo was taken in 2002).

The above photo shows some smaller Hibiscus tiliaceus trees growing along the entry road to the 4-H camp.

 

 

 

[tropicbreeze]

18 hours ago, Eric in Orlando said:

I see on GRIN and Kew's Plant List it has been changed back to Hibiscus tiliaceus. 

It does get confusing with the names. Kew (The Plant List) still has Talipariti tiliaceum as an accepted name. But it also lists Hibiscus tiliaceus as an accepted name. TROPICOS also lists both but gives distribution of H. tiliaceus as Gabon in Africa and T. tiliaceum distribution as throughout the tropics. GRIN only lists H. tiliaceus. Maybe they're all still 'discussing' it. In nurseries here you see both names as well but mostly Talipariti.
 
The species form is a native here occupying coastal sand dunes and the landward side of mangrove forests, hence it's common name "Mangrove Hibiscus", although it's not actually a mangrove. Probably occupies the same niche through the rest of the tropics as well. It grows as a very large untidy sprawling shrub. The cultivar "Rubra" grows as a tidier small tree. Rarely see the species form in cultivation but the "Rubra" form is very popular and common.

[Eric in Orlando]

Wow, I didn't catch that as I didn't look up Talipariti in Kew's Plant List. Must still be discussion of what is correct. GRIN did change it to Talipariti a few years ago then changed it back to Hibiscus as I had changed signs here at Leu Gardens along with Hibiscus hamabo/Talipariti hamabo. 

[Walt]

Another Hibiscus tiliaceus up in town (photo taken 12-19-2016). It was about 10 a.m., and you can see lots of yellow flowers, which should turn red by this evening, then start falling off.

About 10 years ago I saw a man (owner of house) out in his yard and stopped and asked him if I could collect some flowers (thought maybe there would be seeds) from his tree. He obliged me. He told me he knew nothing about the trees, what species it was, etc., as he had just recently moved into the house.

 

[Walt]

This morning one of my H. tiliaceus trees was loaded with yellow blooms like these:

 

[GDLWyverex]

What I can't figure is why so many of these trees, that I see, have leaves the size of dinner plates, while mine, which is 5 years old is approx 12 feet tall, has leaves the size of desert plates. The humidity here is sufficient that wood is not used in construction, as it rots within a few years, a fact that I can unfortunately attest to.

Happy New Year

 

Richard

[Danilopez89]

1 hour ago, GDLWyverex said:

What I can't figure is why so many of these trees, that I see, have leaves the size of dinner plates, while mine, which is 5 years old is approx 12 feet tall, has leaves the size of desert plates. The humidity here is sufficient that wood is not used in construction, as it rots within a few years, a fact that I can unfortunately attest to.

Happy New Year

 

Richard

Try feeding that sucker.

[Danilopez89]

I have one of these in my back yard. When I bought it I was told it goes by the name "arbol de algodon" in Spanish. The other name I came across in the net was "sea hibiscus".

Cool trees! They can grow to give nice shade. I really like the big heart shaped leaves. I'm hoping to get some flowers pretty soon.

[Really full garden]

6 hours ago, Danilopez89 said:

I have one of these in my back yard. When I bought it I was told it goes by the name "arbol de algodon" in Spanish. The other name I came across in the net was "sea hibiscus".

Cool trees! They can grow to give nice shade. I really like the big heart shaped leaves. I'm hoping to get some flowers pretty soon.

In Hawaii it is called Hau. I have a variegated one that hardly ever blooms.

[GDLWyverex]

13 hours ago, Danilopez89 said:

I have one of these in my back yard. When I bought it I was told it goes by the name "arbol de algodon" in Spanish. The other name I came across in the net was "sea hibiscus".

Cool trees! They can grow to give nice shade. I really like the big heart shaped leaves. I'm hoping to get some flowers pretty soon.

In México they call them archioides

 

Richard

[chinandega81]

On 12/12/2016 at 9:04 PM, Walt said:

The first time I ever saw one of these trees (from a distance) many years ago, I first thought they were a sea grape until I examined a leaf more closely. I had no idea what kind of tree it was so I took a photo of it and posted it here. That was probably well over 10 years ago. Somebody here identified the tree for me.

Back in June of 2011 I took some cuttings from a local Hibiscus tiliaceaus tree (I realize I'm mispronouncing the species in the video. I've since go the pronunciation correct), and rooted some cuttings. I guess I grew the cuttings for a year or so, then I planted them.  Since then they have grown fairly fast. I finally got my first flowers on the trees in 2015. Before these trees I used to have a variegated form of Hibiscus tiliaceus a member of PalmTalk generously gave me. However, after getting partially frozen back three winters in a row it died. I don't know if the variegated variety is less cold hardy or not. The trees in my video below have never been frozen back. They are growing in a slightly warmer area of my property, strategically planted there for that purpose (less chance of getting frost/cold damage). I'm looking forward to seeing just how big and spreading these trees will be one day.

 

Any updates? How did you do the cuttings?

[Walt]

59 minutes ago, chinandega81 said:

Any updates? How did you do the cuttings?

No updates. In 2017 my largest Hibiscus tiliaceus was totally blown over across my driveway by Hurricane Irma. I had to chainsaw it way back. Since then new limbs grew and turned upright. Cuttings are easy. I just take a small diameter lower branch and make cuttings about every 8 inches. I make the cuts on a bias for more surface area, dip the ends in rooting hormone and stick them in a community pot. I remove all buy maybe one leaf (which is going to die and fall off anyway). I make enough cuttings to allow for some failures.  They seem to root easily. Of course, I make the cuttings during the hot summer months. After about 3 weeks new leaves will start to emerge.

[chinandega81]

11 hours ago, Walt said:

No updates. In 2017 my largest Hibiscus tiliaceus was totally blown over across my driveway by Hurricane Irma. I had to chainsaw it way back. Since then new limbs grew and turned upright. Cuttings are easy. I just take a small diameter lower branch and make cuttings about every 8 inches. I make the cuts on a bias for more surface area, dip the ends in rooting hormone and stick them in a community pot. I remove all buy maybe one leaf (which is going to die and fall off anyway). I make enough cuttings to allow for some failures.  They seem to root easily. Of course, I make the cuttings during the hot summer months. After about 3 weeks new leaves will start to emerge.

Thanks! How thick are the small diameter lower branches you cut off? Where do you buy rooting hormone? Will the grow roots without the hormone? Do you put them in just the regular "sandy" soil we have or something special?

 

BTW sorry to hear about the main tree being blown over. Hopefully you were able to root new ones from that and they are doing well?

[Walt]

You can buy rooting hormone at Home Depot, Lowes, and most garden (nursery) stores, off Amazon, etc. You may not need the hormone, it just helps. The diameter sizes of my cuttings were about 1/2" to 3/4" in size and about 8-10" long. I put maybe 20 cuttings in one big community pot. I make 20 cuttings so as to allow for failures.   But H. tiliaceus cuttings take pretty well. Again, I make my cuttings when nighttime temperatures stay about 70 degrees (Fahrenheit). After about two weeks I will pull a cutting up to see if there are fine white roots growing. I don't need to do this as, I can just wait until I start to see the emergence of new leaves. Once I know the cuttings have taken I gently separate them from a community pot and pot them up in separate 1-gallon pots. I think it takes about 6 months or so to get a 2 feet high sapling from the cuttings. As for a potting mix, I just use an inexpensive potting soil mix I get from Home Depot. In fact, most times I just use top soil they sell in bags. I don't buy expensive potting soil, never needed it. I can almost guarantee you that if you make at least 10 cuttings you will get at least 50% success. 

[chinandega81]

2 hours ago, Walt said:

You can buy rooting hormone at Home Depot, Lowes, and most garden (nursery) stores, off Amazon, etc. You may not need the hormone, it just helps. The diameter sizes of my cuttings were about 1/2" to 3/4" in size and about 8-10" long. I put maybe 20 cuttings in one big community pot. I make 20 cuttings so as to allow for failures.   But H. tiliaceus cuttings take pretty well. Again, I make my cuttings when nighttime temperatures stay about 70 degrees (Fahrenheit). After about two weeks I will pull a cutting up to see if there are fine white roots growing. I don't need to do this as, I can just wait until I start to see the emergence of new leaves. Once I know the cuttings have taken I gently separate them from a community pot and pot them up in separate 1-gallon pots. I think it takes about 6 months or so to get a 2 feet high sapling from the cuttings. As for a potting mix, I just use an inexpensive potting soil mix I get from Home Depot. In fact, most times I just use top soil they sell in bags. I don't buy expensive potting soil, never needed it. I can almost guarantee you that if you make at least 10 cuttings you will get at least 50% success. 

Thanks! I will try this when the weather warms up in the spring. What do you do with all your cuttings though lol! 

 

I have a random question for you...you might not know though. When do hibiscus tiliaceus grow the most? I have noticed when they flower they tend to stop putting on growth...and when they grow they don't flower. It also seems like the flower in the warm growing season and then try to grow when it gets cold? Or maybe mine is just an odd ball. 

[Walt]

6 hours ago, chinandega81 said:

Thanks! I will try this when the weather warms up in the spring. What do you do with all your cuttings though lol! 

 

I have a random question for you...you might not know though. When do hibiscus tiliaceus grow the most? I have noticed when they flower they tend to stop putting on growth...and when they grow they don't flower. It also seems like the flower in the warm growing season and then try to grow when it gets cold? Or maybe mine is just an odd ball. 

I've only did cuttings twice. The first time was to make cuttings from a local tree so as to grow my own trees. The second time (this past April 12, 2020) I made cuttings from my own tree, just to say I did.  Plus, I wanted some more trees to take the place of all the dead slash pines I've lost due to the southern pine beetle. Also, I wanted some more to help screen off neighbors.  I also bartered on potted plant for a bromeliad with a palm friend.

Below are three photos.

Photo #1: Cuttings I made on April 12, 2020.   (I later separated them once they became well rooted.)

Photo#2: A typical plant in one gallon pot today, December 18, 2020

Photo#3: I planted this plant last summer from the same batch. It happened to be the biggest one of the batch, but it seems to be growing faster in the ground. Overall it's about 5 feet high. Nice growth since started from cuttings just 9 months ago. I expect exploding growth next year.

And BTW, I really haven't paid attention to the growth of my trees while making flowers.

[chinandega81]

They look great! thanks. I noticed one of the leaves appeared to be eater....do you have a problem with Sri Lanka bulweevil? They attacked mine and that also stunted it's growth...the new growth kept getting attacked. This tree seems to be a favorite of theirs in my yard. Have you had this issue? If so, how do you "control" it?

1 hour ago, Walt said:

I've only did cuttings twice. The first time was to make cuttings from a local tree so as to grow my own trees. The second time (this past April 12, 2020) I made cuttings from my own tree, just to say I did.  Plus, I wanted some more trees to take the place of all the dead slash pines I've lost due to the southern pine beetle. Also, I wanted some more to help screen off neighbors.  I also bartered on potted plant for a bromeliad with a palm friend.

Below are three photos.

Photo #1: Cuttings I made on April 12, 2020.   (I later separated them once they became well rooted.)

Photo#2: A typical plant in one gallon pot today, December 18, 2020

Photo#3: I planted this plant last summer from the same batch. It happened to be the biggest one of the batch, but it seems to be growing faster in the ground. Overall it's about 5 feet high. Nice growth since started from cuttings just 9 months ago. I expect exploding growth next year.

And BTW, I really haven't paid attention to the growth of my trees while making flowers.

 

[Walt]

1 hour ago, chinandega81 said:

They look great! thanks. I noticed one of the leaves appeared to be eater....do you have a problem with Sri Lanka bulweevil? They attacked mine and that also stunted it's growth...the new growth kept getting attacked. This tree seems to be a favorite of theirs in my yard. Have you had this issue? If so, how do you "control" it?

 

Something is eating some of the leaves from time to time, but I haven't noticed what. I've never seen a Sri Lanka weevil on the leaves, nor any other leaf eating insect. I generally use Dominion 2L for insect control (on non edible plants), as it is a systemic with a high concentration of imidacloprid.