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Until I read an article on Helium, I was not aware that Rose of Sharon bushes are a member of the hibiscus family. Last year for Mother's Day, my son gave me a tropical hibiscus which was gorgeous but it did not survive the southern Indiana winter even though I brought it into my basement. This spring, I searched a local nursery for a hardy perennial hibiscus and recognized a close similarity between that particular bush and my Rose of Sharons. With a little Internet research, I stumbled onto Helium. Let me share a rewarding gardening project relating to the care of Rose of Sharons.

Rose of Sharon bushes can be successfully and easily propagated by planting the seed pods of a parent plant. After experiencing problems with water run-off from a small ditch on our property line, I planted twenty or more Rose of Sharon bushes from seed on my side of the ditch. In late September, five years ago, I collected about a hundred seed pods from the unopened blooms on my one twenty-year(+) old plant. I put three or four seeds each in holes (no more than two inches deep) about a foot apart between my chain link fence and my neighbor's board fence, a space about two to three feet wide and maybe thirty feet long. I fertilized them and watered them frequently during their first summer of growth. I been fortunate to have sufficient rain in the years since to keep them growing well with occasional fertilizer. I only lost one plant due to missing boards at the bottom of my neighbor's fence which causes a sudden burst of water during hard storms. The seeds closest to this hole were washed away from the force of this water. Last year, I transplanted a small bush to that hole and it is growing well. The second year, I cut the bushes back to the height of my chain length fence. Beyond these simple procedures, the care of Rose of Sharon bushes is minimal. I plan to cut them back again this fall simply because they are now towering over my neighbor's ten-foot fence. The parent plant is over twenty-four years old and I have cut it back to a height of three feet several times during the years and it has not suffered any problems. Indeed, it has spread more with each pruning.

The bushes serve a double function: they hold back the rushing water during a rainstorm blocking its travel into my yard and they hold the dirt in place in the ditch with their strong root system. The area involved is a sloping hillside. Our home is the fourth one down the hill. The natural ease of care and beauty of Rose of Sharons made this project a cinch and in addition they provide a blind for my neighbor's deteriorating fence. In retrospect, if I had it to do over, I would make one change. I would go from place to place around the area and ask the owners for seed pods from different plants to provide some variety of color.

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