I Have An Althea That It’s Limbs Are Growing Down

Question

I have an Altha that is about 4 yrs old that is growing downward instead of up and out, almost like an umbrella. It is otherwise healthy and had tons of double blooms this year. How ever it looks really strange. What do I do with it?

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Answer 1

I do not have this problem with my varieties of Althea (a.k.a., Rose of Sharon; Hibiscus syriacus) but this happened to a friend when the branches bent from the weight of the flowers; the branches get leggy and the canopy becomes top heavy. She tried to prevent this problem by pruning the bush in the winter or early spring but I never do so, oh well. If you provide some additional water during the summer and this does not help self correct the branches, you may need to prune them in early Spring.