Hibiscus syriacus FRENCH CABARET ® White - Rose of Sharon

The Hibiscus syriacus 'FRENCH CABARET ® WHITE ‘Mindouwh4’ is a vigorous deciduous shrub that charms with its romantic flowering. From July to September, adorned with large double flowers of a brilliant white, it brings luminosity and much charm to the garden. Cold-resistant and accommodating, it requires little maintenance. Placed as a standalone specimen, in a bed, or in a flowering hedge, this rose of Sharon is truly ornamental.

'FRENCH CABARET ® WHITE' belongs to the Malvaceae family; it is a horticultural cultivar of the species Hibiscus syriacus, known by the names rose of Sharon, tree mallow, garden ketmia, or Syrian hibiscus. This species is native to East Asia (from China to India, via Korea and Taiwan) and has become widely naturalized in Europe and North America; it is also emblematic in South Korea where it is called mugunghwa.
This cultivar 'French Cabaret White', selected and distributed by the Minier / Hortival Diffusion group in France, is part of the French Cabaret® series which includes several colours ('Blush', 'Red', 'Purple', 'White'), all characterised by their very double, sterile flowering, abundant and prolonged. This cultivar produces neither fruit nor seeds.

It is a shrub of fairly rapid growth, which branches have a narrow, spreading silhouette. In the ground, it typically reaches 2 m in height and about 1.50 m in spread at 10 years of age; in a pot, its size remains more modest, often limited to between 1 and 1.50 m depending on the container volume. Its leaves, alternate, trilobed, medium green and coarsely dentate, measure 5 to 10 cm long. They unfurl late in spring, then fall in autumn.
The flowering begins in July and renews itself until September, sometimes until early autumn if the weather remains mild. The large, very double flowers form true white pompons with a diameter of 10 cm. Although each flower is ephemeral, the continuous renewal of flower buds on the year's shoots leads to sustained flowering for several weeks. The shrub is hardy down to –20 °C, it likes neutral to slightly calcareous, well-drained soils, and it tolerates moderate drought once well established.

In the garden, the Hibiscus FRENCH CABARET ® WHITE ‘Mindouwh4’ has a luminous presence. This beautiful shrub flowers for over three months. It can be placed as a standalone subject, but also accompanies other summer and autumn flowerings in a large bed of shrubs and perennials. Pair it, for example, with Hibiscus FRENCH CABARET ® 'Red' or 'Purple', or with shrubby lavateras 'Barnsley' and 'Bredon Springs' in pink tones. Used in an informal hedge, it creates a very floriferous screen that renews itself each year without special effort, and can be paired with white, pink, or mauve crape myrtles or with buddleias. In a large container, it adds character to a sunny terrace. Reliable and easy to grow, it naturally finds its place in both romantic settings and more classic displays.