What to do about frost bitten hibiscus bushes?

Have all the leaves turned brown and fallen off, leaving you with bare branches? Hibiscus will not usually live through temperatures much below 40 degrees. If it was just an occasional frost, they'll probably spring-back!



You can check the "aliveness" by scratching the branches with a thumbnail. If you see green, the plant is alive. If it's brown and dry, it's dead, at least on the upper branches. If you can possibly check the root-mass and it's all slimey and brown, you may be out of luck. If there are some white roots, you may be ok. If so, cut back the tops and avoid over-watering. Let the soil dry out down an inch or so before watering. Even though it sounds like a good idea, resist fertilization until the plants actually leaf out again and are actively growing.



Good Luck
What to do about frost bitten hibiscus bushes?
They will be fine, only severe freeze would bother them,and that would be final.
Reply:You should prune your trees hard as soon as they are bare [or nearly there] certainly by the end of Autumn, prune them hard and they will come back bushier than ever with more flowers, don't forget to spray them - specially on the underside of the leaves during the season.

alvinarf