The Diana Rose of Sharon, otherwise known as the Hibiscus Syriacus ‘Diana’ or Rose of Sharon ‘Diana’, Shrub Althea ‘Diana’, is a rather well known shrub plant by gardening enthusiasts around the world.
Best known for its low maintenance and moderate growth, this shrub will likely liven up your house (or garden) with its green colored leaves. But, only if you learn how to take proper care of it for it to thrive.
Fortunately, taking care of your Diana Rose of Sharon is not too difficult – as long as you follow our guidelines in this Diana Rose of Sharon Care Guide. Now let’s get started.
But if you prefer to watch a short video instead, check it out here:
The fundamental caring guidelines for every Diana Rose of Sharon can be summed up into the following:
- Water: The Diana Rose of Sharon prefers constant watering each week and more during the hot season.
- Light: Keep your Hibiscus Syriacus ‘Diana’ in an environment where it can receive partial to full sun on a daily basis.
- Soil: Make sure to keep the Diana Rose of Sharon in soil with moist but well-draining to well draining properties, so ideally, one that is made of clay, loam, chalk, and sand.
And that’s practically it! If you keep these three factors in check, your Diana Rose of Sharon will likely have all it needs for it to survive and even thrive.
Scientific / Botanical Aspects
In botanical terms, the Diana Rose of Sharon belongs to the Malvaceae family, the genus Hibiscus and the species Syriacus, hence its scientific (or botanical) name Hibiscus Syriacus ‘Diana’ (hi-BIS-kus si-ri-A-kus).
As with other Hibiscus’s, the Diana Rose of Sharon is a deciduous plant, which means it will shed its leaves annually once autumn comes.
Growing Region
Knowing your plant’s native region is very useful, as it can give you tips on which environment is best for your Diana Rose of Sharon. If you keep it in mind, you can try to replicate these conditions at home, and you’ll likely end with a healthier plant.
With this in mind, the Hibiscus Syriacus ‘Diana’ will be most used to the heat zones in the 1 – 8 region, as the plant hardiness level falls between 5b, 5a, 6b, 6a, 7b, 7a, 8b, 8a and the ideal climate zone is between 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, H1.
Growth and Size
Growth
In terms of size and growth, the Diana Rose of Sharon is a relatively moderate grower, which makes things somewhat easy for any plant enthusiast.
Size
But, what size of Diana Rose of Sharon are we talking about? What can you expect in terms of height, spread and spacing? Let’s dig in…
The Hibiscus Syriacus ‘Diana’ can grow up to 4′ – 10′ (120cm – 3m) in 4′ – 10′ (120cm – 3m) and 3′ – 6′ (90cm – 180cm) in 3′ – 6′ (90cm – 180cm).
These dimensions make the Diana Rose of Sharon a relatively large shrub compared to others, so it’s best to keep this fact in mind since it will affect where you want to keep yours at home.
This is why experts recommend keeping an area of approximately 72″ – 84″ (180cm – 210cm) free so the Diana Rose of Sharon can spread to its best extent.
Water
In terms of watering, the Diana Rose of Sharon is a fairly simple plant to take care. This is mostly because it has a straightforward watering schedule and somewhat regular watering needs.
Specifically, most experts agree that the Hibiscus Syriacus ‘Diana’ prefers constant watering each week and more during the hot season.
Which is why it is considered a plant with relatively low to average needs in terms of water.
Watering
As a rule of thumb, you should remember to keep your Diana Rose of Sharon in soil with moist but well-draining to well draining characteristics, as these will guarantee the right conditions for your plant to grow and thrive.
When you consider this, this is why you should aim to choose soil that has good drainage properties to keep the right moisture levels at all times.
In our experience, the famous ‘thumb’ or ‘finger’ test is what works best for the Diana Rose of Sharon since with it, you will be able to give it the right amount of water, every time – regardless of the environment or placement where you do decide to keep it.
Soil Mix
As mentioned earlier, the Diana Rose of Sharon prefers to have soil with good drainage properties at all times, reason why you need to make the soil mix out of clay, loam, chalk, and sand.
This is why most experts agree that the Diana Rose of Sharon requires soil with clay, high organic matter, and loam (silt), which will give you the right conditions it needs.
In addition to this, expert gardeners recommend having preferably neutral to alkaline soil.
Light and Exposure
In terms of light & exposure, the Diana Rose of Sharon requires partial to full sun in order for it to thrive under the right conditions.
Most experts agree that this shrub will do well as long as you keep it in full sun, and it will be able to grow properly.
Specifically, we recommend that you place your Hibiscus Syriacus ‘Diana’ in little to partial shade (only 2-6 hours of direct sunlight a day), to full and direct sun (more 6 hours of direct sunlight per day).
Season
Being a deciduous plant, the Diana Rose of Sharon will shed its leaves annually once autumn comes.
But, you can expect it to have its ‘prime-time’ during the summer (mid, late), and during the fall.
Flowers
You can expect your Diana Rose of Sharon to flower around the summer months from July to September (summer).
In particular, this shrub is well known for its long bloom season, flowers for cutting and showy flowers around the plant enthusiast community.
The Diana Rose of Sharon produces some beautiful white, or white flowers around this time of year.
Foliage
The leaves from the Diana Rose of Sharon have a beautiful green color during most of the year.
In particular, they have a compound (pinnately, bipinnately, palmately) arrangement with an alternate organization in its leaves.
You can expect the leaves from your Hibiscus Syriacus ‘Diana’ to be around (3-6 inches) in size.
Attracts, Tolerance and Resistance
The Diana Rose of Sharon is well known for being able to attract wildlife such as hummingbirds and butterflies, so keep that in mind when choosing your plant, as you’ll likely end up finding one or another in your garden.
Additionally, it has a special tolerance for salt, drought and animals like deer, so don’t worry if any of these come along, your Hibiscus Syriacus ‘Diana’ will be fine.
Garden
Now, let’s talk garden and how your Diana Rose of Sharon will look best in it.
Most Hibiscus Syriacus ‘Diana’ owners agree that this shrub will look great in most cottage, contemporary and rustic gardens of all types.
Other owners consider that they complement well most gardens of coastal garden, city and courtyard, and in informal and cottage styles.
In particular, the Diana Rose of Sharon’s best location within your garden is in beds and borders, banks and slopes, and in hedges and screens, others use it for landscaping in a firescaping/fire wise, specimen, border, cutting garden, privacy screen, hedge, container, coastal exposure, or a urban garden.
Companion Plants
Diana Rose of Sharon’s do well with some other plants beside it. One good companion plant is the Buxus, which will pair up nicely with your leafy friend.
Others consider that a nice Potentilla will work well too, so choose whichever you find works best for you!
Conclusion
And we’ve come to an end. Fortunately, that’s everything you need to know about your Diana Rose of Sharon to keep it safe and sound in your garden or home. Enjoy planting!
