DPoD August 28th Part III - The Chronology of a Hibiscus

I'm considering this blogpost as an early birthday present to Sunshine. Her hibsicus is the most beautiful flower in her garden and I've been tracking it's growth over the summer so that I could do this near the end of the season. Here's a little look back over the summer at how things have progressed:

June 12th - last summer Sunshine had a beautiful hibiscus, however we had been told that it was a tropical plant and could be sensitive over the winter. The entire plant went woody and so far there were no signs of the hibiscus returning. That is until this morning when I noticed a little tiny green sprout coming up out of the ground where the gorgeous flowers had been the

year before.

June 13th: The warmth and sunshine brought out a neighbour as well. Things are looking promising. It's amazing to think of what might become of these two little sprouts no bigger than your thumb.

June 17th: The hibiscus is now growing almost visibly during the day. The boys are quite intrigued to see what it will become.

June 21st : It now begins to compete with the lantern for UV light. Best of luck to you little lantern.

July 3rd : The 3 main branches of the plant are now over 4 feet tall. Note that the lantern has now thoroughly been dwarfed.

July 23rd : The lantern has now been moved. The plant is now competing with the fence for height.

July 30th: The hibiscus eclipses the top of the 6 foot fence. Quite a feat in 2 months. There appear to be dozens upon dozens of blooms ready to go. Many of them seem yellow which worries me.

August 10th: The first bloom survives after a handful showed promise, but then yellowed and fell off. There may be more on the way.

August 27th: There are now more than 8 beautiful dinner-plate sized flowers in bloom from the first light until the end of the day. The hibiscus is truly the highlight of the garden and every visitor comments on how it's beauty is second only to my wife's (or did I add that part myself?)

and
finally
we
come to
today
which
could be
the
most
glorious
day for
the plant

August 28th: The total number of blooms totals more than a dozen. If only the plant knew how happy it makes Sunshine feel.