Homemade Fertilizer for Hibiscus Plants

Growth Rate

• Perennial hibiscus reaches their mature height within two to three years. Dwarf varieties grow 2 to 3 feet. Many cultivars grow to 8 feet in height and width. They prefer a sunny location and well-draining, fertile soil. Hibiscus plants are heavy feeders that benefit from homemade fertilizer that contains all seventeen nutrients they need to grow and thrive. Compost and homemade fertilizer provides slow release of nutrients, reducing the number of applications per year. Feed hibiscus monthly with a side dressing of homemade compost fertilizer.

Homemade Compost

• Backyard compost is easily made in three to six months. Kitchen scraps, grass cuttings, yard clippings, newspaper and leaves are layered in a compost bin. The addition of water and oxygen starts the decomposition process that results in finished compost within several months. Finished compost is brown, dry, crumbly and sweet smelling. Spread several cups of finished mature compost around the base of each hibiscus plant.

Homemade Fertilizer

• Commercial organic fertilizers contain ingredients that you can mix at home. Hibiscus plants thrive in slightly acid soil with pH 6 to 7. Purchase cottonseed meal, kelp meal, rock powders and agricultural lime to mix at garden centers or online farm supply sources. Chopped chemical-free grass cuttings are sometimes used in place of cottonseed meal. Well-dried coffee grounds also improve soil's acidic content.

Slow Release

• Homemade natural fertilizer mixtures add nutrients to the soil slowly. Synthetic chemical fertilizer given to hibiscus plants may boost growth and flowering quickly at the expense of soil health. Phosphorus produces increased bloom size but deteriorates plant vigor over time. High phosphorus bloom-boosters also leach into groundwater as pollutants. Over-use of high nitrogen fertilizer encourages leaf growth rather than flower development.