A Proven Winners® ColorChoice® Flowering Shrubs variety, Hibiscus Paraplu Rouge™ Rose of Sharon is a showy, deciduous shrub offering summer interest. A standout in trials and test gardens, blooming abundantly and continuously through summer and into fall, this plant sets large single flowers that have dark reddish-pink color. Borne on slender branches, the tropical-looking flowers attract bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds.
A Hibiscus syriacus, commonly called rose of Sharon, Paraplu Rouge is a multistemmed, herbaceous shrub with a moderate growth rate and a well-branched, upright, compact, spreading habit of attractive 3-lobed, coarsely toothed foliage. The plant can be trained as a small tree or espalier. It is an excellent specimen or foundation plant but is very effective massed or grouped as a hedge, screen, or a back of the bed or border plant.
Tough and remarkably easy to grow, rose of Sharon grows best in sunny to partly shady locations with fertile, organically rich, moderately moist, well-draining soil with a slightly acidic to neutral pH, but it tolerates poor soils and some drought and is pH adaptable. It loves hot summers and blooms best in 6 to 8 hours of full sun. Good air circulation is important for disease prevention and for best overall performance. Rose of Sharon is fairly pest and disease free; deer resistant; and heat, humidity (with good air circulation), and air pollution tolerant. The plant can over winter in temperatures as cold as -20°F with heavy mulch covering the root ball to insulate it.
Hibiscus Paraplu Rouge has a naturally attractive form and only needs pruning to tidy up its shape and/or to maintain a desired size. Pruning back stems also encourages more blooms and can increase air circulation within the plant to help prevent disease, but pruning should be done sparingly, after flowering has finished. Removing up to ⅓ of the overall shrub creates a fuller bush with larger blooms. Keep in mind that these shrubs bloom directly on older wood or on shoots that come off old wood.
