Pick up know-how for tackling diseases, pests and weeds.
Farm bill, farm marketing, agribusiness webinars, & farm policy.
Find tactics for healthy livestock and sound forages.
Scheduling and methods of irrigation.
Explore our Extension locations around the state.
Commercial row crop production in Arkansas.
Agriculture weed management resources.
Use virtual and real tools to improve critical calculations for farms and ranches.
Learn to ID forages and more.
Explore our research locations around the state.
Get the latest research results from our county agents.
Our programs include aquaculture, diagnostics, and energy conservation.
Keep our food, fiber and fuel supplies safe from disaster.
Private, Commercial & Non-commercial training and education.
Specialty crops including turfgrass, vegetables, fruits, and ornamentals.
Find educational resources and get youth engaged in agriculture.
Gaining garden smarts and sharing skills.
Timely tips for the Arkansas home gardener.
Creating beauty in and around the home.
Maintenance calendar, and best practices.
Coaxing the best produce from asparagus to zucchini.
What’s wrong with my plants? The clinic can help.
Featured trees, vines, shrubs and flowers.
Ask our experts plant, animal, or insect questions.
Enjoying the sweet fruits of your labor.
Herbs, native plants, & reference desk QA.
Growing together from youth to maturity.
Crapemyrtles, hydrangeas, hort glossary, and weed ID databases.
Get beekeeping, honey production, and class information.
Grow a pollinator-friendly garden.
Schedule these timely events on your gardening calendar.
Equipping individuals to lead organizations, communities, and regions.
Guiding communities and regions toward vibrant and sustainable futures.
Guiding entrepreneurs from concept to profit.
Position your business to compete for government contracts.
Find trends, opportunities and impacts.
Providing unbiased information to enable educated votes on critical issues.
Increase your knowledge of public issues & get involved.
Research-based connection to government and policy issues.
Support Arkansas local food initiatives.
Read about our efforts.
Preparing for and recovering from disasters.
Licensing for forestry and wildlife professionals.
Preserving water quality and quantity.
Cleaner air for healthier living.
Firewood & bioenergy resources.
Managing a complex forest ecosystem.
Read about nature across Arkansas and the U.S.
Learn to manage wildlife on your land.
Soil quality and its use here in Arkansas.
Learn to ID unwanted plant and animal visitors.
Timely updates from our specialists.
Eating right and staying healthy.
Ensuring safe meals.
Take charge of your well-being.
Cooking with Arkansas foods.
Making the most of your money.
Making sound choices for families and ourselves.
Nurturing our future.
Get tips for food, fitness, finance, and more!
Understanding aging and its effects.
Giving back to the community.
Managing safely when disaster strikes.
Listen to our latest episode!
October 29, 2016
Please help me identify this plant. My friend gave me a rooted cutting this spring and it was only 3 or 4 inches tall and now it is six feet tall and blooming. The flowers are like little powder puffs. Other friend’s want some but I can’t even tell them what it is, much less how to root one. Can you help with both questions?
The plant in question is a confederate rose, Hibiscus mutabilis. This plant is a fall only blooming hardy hibiscus. The flowers mutate or change colors during the course of the day, opening either light pink and fading to white or dark pink depending on the variety. Before a killing frost, (which will kill the plant back to the soil line) cut the stalks and cut them into 4-6 inch lengths. Then put them in a bucket of water in a protected area where they will not freeze. They should be rooted within a month. Then you can pot them up or leave them in the water (changing it periodically) until spring. Once the soil warms up, share with friends and plant more.
September 26, 2015
I recently saw a large bush in my friend’s yard and it had big leaves and the flowers looked like pink carnations. She said it was a rose hibiscus and only blooms in the fall. I have never heard of this plant before but would like to buy one. Are they available at local nurseries and where is the best place to plant one?
I believe you are talking about the confederate rose – Hibiscus mutabilis. This hardy hibiscus is hardy from around central Arkansas south. It begins growing in the spring when the soil temperatures warm up and grows up to 6-8 feet or more in one season. It produces woody stalks and the flowers either open white or pink and fade to a shade of white or pink depending on the variety during the course of the day—they mutate or change, thus the species name mutabilis. It is an old-fashioned plant which is probably more common as a pass-along plant, getting a piece from your friend before a frost would give you a start. Take cuttings and put them in a bucket of water. They will root and you can plant those outside next spring. The plant dies to the ground after a killing frost and will begin the process all over again next spring.
April 2010
I would like to try a hardy oleanders in Hot Springs Village. I have heard of Hines Hardy. Is there one you would recommend? Does the Confederate rose grow here? Will trailing Thyme do around stepping stones? I need something that stays alive all winter.
Prior to this winter, even the common oleander varieties were overwintering in central Arkansas without any damage. This winter some did take a hit, but they should be coming back from the root system even if they were frozen back. Confederate rose (Hibiscus mutabilis) is winter hardy from central Arkansas south--it dies completely to the ground each year and is slow to recover in the spring, but it will come back. Creeping thyme is a wonderful ground cover around rocky sites. It doesn't like rich, wet areas, so should do well around stepping stones and you get the added benefit of it being culinary as well as ornamental. There are actually several varieties of thyme with green, yellow or variegated foliage.
All links to external sites open in a new window. You may return to the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture web site by closing this window when you are finished. We do not guarantee the accuracy of the information, or the accessibility for people with disabilities listed at any external site.
Links to commercial sites are provided for information and convenience only. Inclusion of sites does not imply University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture's approval of their product or service to the exclusion of others that may be similar, nor does it guarantee or warrant the standard of the products or service offered.
The mention of any commercial product in this web site does not imply its endorsement by the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture over other products not named, nor does the omission imply that they are not satisfactory.