What do you call a hibiscus that doesn't bloom?
My wife and I bought a hibiscus plant in a bid to attract sunbirds in the area. The idea was for showy blooms and nectar to get these cute little birds to visit.
Months later, we've not managed a full bloom despite using fertiliser. We'd get many buds but inevitably they'd open up a little, yellow, and break off. What's more, there's also been an infestation of whiteflies that we're fighting. Those little buggers are nothing if not persistent.
And at some point, a part of me wondered — what's all this for? Why try to keep a plant alive that doesn't seem to offer any "benefit"...no blooms, no sunbird. Would it be easier to just dump it and get a new one?
Then I remembered that the same plant (which we keep in a pot) had survived 2 falls due to strong wind. Even though it's been under attack by whiteflies, it still keeps putting out new shoots. It still does everything a plant does (apart from the flowers, that is!). There was even a period of time where I fell off watering the plant but it has since bounced back. If any plant deserves a chance, it's this one.
(Again, I'm getting reminded of that Marilyn Monroe quote.)
We're still going to try our best to fend off this whitefly infestation! The plant does look better since we discovered the problem and started applying neem oil and removing the eggs/nymphs. We'll also try using grow lights, to see if that helps mitigate the less than ideal light conditions. But if a plant can exemplify resilience, we humans can't just give up so easily.