Hibiscus moscheutos Solène - Swamp Rose Mallow

The Hibiscus moscheutos Solène is a beautiful plant from the Planet series, developed in France for its early and long-lasting flowering season, which runs from July to September. This perennial hibiscus produces wide cup-shaped flowers with a fresh pink colour around a cherry red centre. The flowers grow on green foliage with purple reflections, which look attractive even when not blooming. The plant is perfect for water features and can also be grown in large pots kept moist on the terrace.

The Hibiscus moscheutos, also known as Hibiscus palustris, is a herbaceous plant with a woody stump from the Malvaceae family, related to mallow and rose mallow. It grows natively in southern United States marshes, reaching heights of up to 2 metres (6 feet 7 inches). In our climate, it produces upright stems that form a spreading bush quite late in spring. Horticulturists have obtained numerous cultivars, including the 'Planet' series, which produces well-branched plants that can withstand temperatures down to -12°C (10.4 °F) and require less sun to fully bloom their long flowering period, giving them an advantage in cooler summers.

'Solène' grows into a beautiful bushy clump that will quickly reach a height of 1.50m (4 ft 11 in) and a spread of 1.20m (3 ft 11 in) in just one season. This cultivar stands out with its large, single and bright flowers, which can reach 25 cm (9.8 in) in diameter, with a very fresh colour, full of vivacity, combining light pink and red on slightly wrinkled petals. The large, uniform leaves in this selection are lobed with pointed tips of a purple-green colour, very ornamental throughout the growing season.

Marsh hibiscus plants are spectacular and cannot go unnoticed. Some people dislike their immense flowers because they can be challenging to integrate into a natural setting. In contrast, others love them for the same reasons that make them suitable for a contemporary-style garden or an exotic scene carefully organised around a water feature or on the terrace. The Planet series offers the opportunity to welcome this superb plant to cooler areas, with particularly hardy and early varieties such as Griotte and Solène. Both will add another dimension to waterlogged flower beds or pond edges, accompanied by a Gunnera, cannas, Ethiopian arum, Rodgersia Chocolate Wings, or a Colocasia esculenta.