Growing purple hibiscus game plan

[Claybo]

Hello, I know very little about plants but I seem to be having success so far. So, I’ve decided to try to grow the free purple hibiscus seeds I got from an eBay seller. I don’t know how to start the seed but once I have a little plant I’m gonna try to fill my hang on side poth-o-carry low profile thing with an inert substrate and maybe one root tab to grow the flower out the top of my tank. 

I kinda like flying from the seat of my pants with this plant thing because I was so careful with finally getting fish and stocking and at this point my plants are doing well so I just kinda wanna see what I can make work without just copy and pasting something from the internet. 
 

Does anyone have any tips that they think would help me with any step of this future project.I’m either going to use a slightly larger gravel or use some kind of painting mesh to hold in a smaller gravel with all those holes

[Guppysnail]

If you start the plants elsewhere and get roots going enough to just suspend the plant, I find my emergent plants did better with no substrate. There was more water flow washing more nutrients over the roots. 

[Claybo]

Alright thanks, I already have a peace lily growing like that I just didn’t know if it’s be different with a hibiscus

[Ken Burke]

Send picture if you get ‘em going

[Claybo]

Will do. i think im gonna try a different method for each seed. Id ont even know if they're viable seeds tho

Edited May 29 by Claybo

[Odd Duck]

@Claybo, you do realize that’s a woody shrub that prefers about 6 hours of sun per day, right?  Likes moist but well-drained soil, and never soggy roots?  I’m not sure how well it will do indoors or growing emerse in your tank.  I’m afraid if the soil is too wet your seeds might rot instead of sprouting.  😬 

[Claybo]

That’s true if it’s planted in soil but the plants adapt differently to grow in water and I’m sure you’ve seen cuttings root in water which is extremely common when propagating house plants. You can also find a lotttt of people who grow peace lily, pothos, monstera, barber palms, and plenty of other plants with no root rot. A peace lily seems to really thrive in an aquarium at long as you keep the roots out of the water and use fert. My peace lily roots are looking super healthy and it’s growing every day.

 

edit: oh I thought this was on the other post with the peace lily and red root floaters when typing that. Well now I’m much more sure of my chances being very low and now that I’m thinking about it, it could be toxic to fish even if it did work. I’m gonna have to look into it more

Edited June 1 by Claybo

[Odd Duck]

Yes, peace lilies love wet roots, same with pothos, etc, that you listed.  I have a couple varieties each of peace lily, pothos, anthuriums, etc, growing emerse.  I just want you to have the best chance of success and would hate for your seeds to go bad before they had a chance.  Purple rose of sharon is a gorgeous bush and I wish you luck!  Share pics once you have them!

[Torrey]

On 5/31/2023 at 6:56 PM, Claybo said:

Well now I’m much more sure of my chances being very low and now that I’m thinking about it, it could be toxic to fish even if it did work. I’m gonna have to look into it more

I have yet to find "poisonous roots" in plants that I grow in aquariums, or in mesh plastic boxes in my ponds.

Mixed success with woody plants and shrubs, the key is to keep the top of the woody  bole (I think that's the right name?) completely out of the water. If that gets soaked, the wood will begin to rot....

I didn't have thriving trees, if it's a tree dependent on the symbiotic relationship between mycorrhizae to uptake nutrients from the soil. I had better success in tanks at rooting woody plants, but eventually some species just need soil.

That being said, roots in well aerated water will typically help even woody plants thrive for at least a time. Look at the rainfall in the area they are indigenous to, and find out how long flooding lasts. That's a good indicator of when you need to hyperfocus on new leaf growth for any signs that transplanting is going to be needed.

 

You won't know if you don't try, so try it!

I have successfully germinated a lot of seeds in a paper towel laid on top of lava rocks I suspended on the side (or back) at the top of the tank. Eventually snails will break down the paper towel, or you can carefully cut it away once the seedling is well established.

I have not had success with anything other than true riparian and aquatic plants in soil that is submerged.

My aquatic stem plants don't even like their stems to be placed in submerged soil, they prefer to be allowed to grow their roots *down* through gravel or sand and find the soil on their own. Can't wait to see where this experiment takes you!

[Claybo]

I didn’t plan to start the plant in the tank, I meant growing it normal and then trying to adapt the plant to live in water. The variations I plan on trying is more pertaining to time I let it grow out of water and also whether I’ll “float” it or plant it in substrate in the basket

[Tanked]

On 5/31/2023 at 11:27 PM, Claybo said:

I didn’t plan to start the plant in the tank, I meant growing it normal and then trying to adapt the plant to live in water. The variations I plan on trying is more pertaining to time I let it grow out of water and also whether I’ll “float” it or plant it in substrate in the basket

It will be interesting to see if you can pull this off.  In addition to @Odd Ducks comments, Rose of Sharon is a fast growing plant with a large taproot and is not aquarium sized.  My only suggestion would be to initially keep as many roots above the water level as possible. if they can adapt, they will find their own way.

Good Luck!