Gold Splash Perennial Hibiscus. This is the only variegated herbaceous perennial Hibiscus that I have ever seen. And I'm not absolutely sure that it is the species "mutabilis," since H. mutabilis flowers for us in the fall and this selection flowers throughout the growing season. I found a plant of this many years ago in a small "collector" plant nursery in Japan. It is not the most stable variegation, but the one characteristic that is worth noting is that it flowers continuously all summer with 6-8" rose red flowers, unlike most others which flower just in the late summer and fall. To maintain the variegation, pinch out any all-green reversions. If one is to grow this selection outside as a hardy perennial, I would suggest mulching the base of the plant so that when it emerges in the spring one will have enough buds from which one can select the best variegations. Frankly, I would suggest that to insure the best variegation, that one grow it as a container plant.
Zones 8-10
