What’s Happening Here?
Ever have a few deja vu moments when growing perennials or gardening? That’s how I occasionally feel. You know, the same plants with the same problems but it’s a different year and this issue has repeated itself year after year after year. That’s what this week’s challenge is. It’s an all too familiar experience I seem to have with my hardy hibiscus year after year.
I saw these holes in a few of the hibiscus in my landscape recently. As previously mentioned, I’ve also observed these symptoms on these very same plants in previous years. It only took me a moment to verify what was causing them. Have you seen this on your hibiscus? Do you also feel like you have deja vu moments? And one final question, do you know what’s happening here?
Stay tuned, I’ll reveal the answer in a few minutes.
AAS Winner
All-America Selections (AAS) coordinates plant trials throughout North America. New varieties are grown next to best-in-class comparisons and judged by a network of professional, independent and volunteer judges. Only the entries exhibiting superior garden performance are granted AAS award designation.
Heliopsis Sole Giatto
Heliopsis Sole Giatto from
Kienzler North America was selected as the National Winner in the perennial category. Sole Giatto is a 12- to 16-in. tall compact false sunflower. It’s highly floriferous and bursts into color in the summer, covering itself with long-lasting bright yellow blooms. It’s great at attracting beneficial pollinators while not appealing to deer and rabbits. Sole Giatto is hardy to Zone 4 and is a great candidate for brightening up retail displays and the landscape. Available from
Think Plants.
IR-4 Survey Says ...
The verdict is yet to be determined, but you are invited to participate in IR-4’s Grower and Extension survey.
Before I get to the survey, please allow me a moment to share some background information on IR-4. The
IR-4 Project (IR-4) plays an instrumental role in coordinating various research projects on food crops, ornamentals and specialty crops. This research generally revolves around pest management (insecticides, miticides, fungicides and biopesticides), weed control (herbicides) and plant growth regulators. Most projects are geared toward product efficacy and plant safety, and the research data is used to support new EPA tolerances and labeled product uses.
The work they do is based on the needs of the industry, and this where you come in. Growers are being asked to participate in the biennial survey that is used to help the IR-4 understand national and regional pest management isses and to help set research priorities for the upcoming two year research cycle.
If you have been experiencing pest management challenges with new or old pests on ornamantals and feel you lack the proper tools to mitigate these issues, please participate in the survey. Perhaps you have a specific product in mind and would like to see efficacy and plant safety data or you’d like to see a specific pest added to a product label. If any of these apply, please participate in the survey.
The deadline to complete the survey is August 29, 2025.
New Perennials at Cultivate’25
Besides catching up with thousands of my friends, colleagues and industry professionals, I really enjoy seeing all of the new products and innovations. New perennial varieties fall into this category. Here are just a few of the exciting new perennials on display at Cultivate’25.
Campanula Ultra Violet
Dummen Orange recently introduced a new
Campanula portenschlagiana cultivar called Ultra Violet. This is a great candidate for small containers and small spaces as it only gets 6- to 8-in. tall. Ultra Pink covers itself with tons of iridescent purple flowers in the early summer. This first-year flowering perennial is hardy to Zone 4.
Clematis Elpis
Concept Plants is proud to introduce this stunning new clematis bred by the renowned clematis breeder Raymond J Evison. Elpis has lush green leaves that beautifully complement its rich deep red flowers. It’s a rebloomer whose large 4 to 5 in. flowers retain their vibrant color with only minimal fading over time. Hardy to Zone 4.
Coreopsis Nova Amber
Nova Amber is a new
Coreopsis verticillata cultivar from
Terra Nova Nurseries. It has attractive thin dark green leaves and covers itself with tons of amber colored blooms. Nova Amber reaches 20-in. tall when blooming and is hardy to Zone 6.
Sedum Wineberry Delight
Wineberry Delight from
Walters Gardens is a stunning new upright sedum featuring dark wine purple foliage. The rose flower buds develop into white flowers with salmon centers, which darken to rose red as they mature. Hardy to Zone 3.
Summer Trade Events
Whether the heat of the summer is getting to you, you’re looking to write off a vacation, or you just simply want to participate in some industry events, I found several options you could consider. Simply click on the name of the event to get more information.
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July 28 to August 8, 2025 |
Multiple Locations—Southern and West Michigan
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August 7-8, 2025 |
San Antonio, Texas
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August 11-14, 2025 |
Scottsdale, Arizona
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August 13, 2025 |
Glendale, Arizona
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August 14-15, 2025 |
Denver, Colorado
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August 15-16, 2025 |
Asheville, North Carolina
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August 20-22, 2025 |
Orlando, Florida
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August 20-22, 2025 |
Portland, Oregon
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The Answer Is…
I showed this image of damage I observed on the hardy hibiscus in my landscape at the top of the newsletter and asked if you could determine its cause. Do you think the holes were caused by caterpillars, snails, insects, hail or something else?
If you answered Japanese beetles, you earned yourself a gold star and some bragging rights until the next challenge. Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica) can be very problematic for many homeowners and nurseries as they can quickly devour plant foliage and render crops not marketable. As the adults emerge from mid June thru early August, they can often be seen consuming a wide variety of herbaceous and woody ornamentals, including hibiscus.
Control Options
There are several insecticides including bifenthrin, deltamethrin and permethrin that can control the adults with contact sprays. Even after knocking down the existing beetles, new adults are likely to fly into the previously treated areas and re-infest the plants. With new beetles coming in, repeated applications are usually necessary because some of these pesticides have relatively short residual effects.
Pheromone traps are highly effective at attracting beetles from over 0.25 mile (0.402 km) away. These traps should not be placed in the plants you’d like to protect as they attract far more beetles than they can capture.
My email is paul@opelgrowers.com if you have any comments, article suggestions or if you'd just like to say hello.
Best regards,
Paul Pilon
Editor-at-Large—Perennial Pulse
Director of Growing—Opel Growers
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