Cold hardiness & minimum temperature

Is Flowering maple (Abutilon × hybridum)cold hardy? Hardiness zone & min temp

Also called flowering maple, parlour maple, Chinese lantern, Indian mallow, Abutilon.

More about flowering maple

About Flowering maple

Abutilon × hybridum · also called flowering maple, parlour maple · flowering

Flowering maple is a fast-growing evergreen mallow-family shrub grown for pendent, bell-shaped blooms in white, red, yellow, orange and coral above maple-like leaves. It wants bright direct light, evenly moist rich soil and cool indoor temperatures. The genus is not on the ASPCA list, so treat as mildly toxic and check with your vet.

Cold limit: USDA 9-11 outdoors; grown as a houseplant or annual in cooler zones (16-21°C (cooler 13-18°C in winter))

Watch for — Sudden leaf and flower drop: Usually a stress response to the soil drying out, cold draughts, or temperatures below about 13°C (55°F).

What flowering maple's hardiness rating actually means

Flowering maple is half-hardy (RHS H2). It survives a mild winter outdoors in a sheltered spot, but a hard frost kills it — so in colder zones it is lifted, potted, or grown as a tender plant. Its RHS rating of H2 means: Tender — survives a frost-free greenhouse or a very mild, sheltered spot. On the US scale that maps to USDA 9-11 outdoors; grown as a houseplant or annual in cooler zones — the zones where it can be left outdoors year-round.

New to these scales? The USDA hardiness zone map explained covers how the zone numbers work, and you can find your own zone with the zone finder.

Minimum temperature — and what happens below it

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about 1 to 5 °C — tolerates cold but no real frost. Flowering maple shrugs off cold nights but a real, sustained freeze will kill it.

Concretely, for flowering maple as it gets too cold:

Down to roughly about 1 to 5 °C it copes, especially if dry and sheltered.
A sustained hard frost collapses the top growth; whether it returns depends on whether the roots, crown or tubers froze.
Wet cold is far more lethal than dry cold for this plant — soggy, frozen soil is the usual killer.

Can flowering maple go outside or overwinter — and where?

It can live outside year-round only in the mildest, most sheltered part of USDA 9-11 outdoors; grown as a houseplant or annual in cooler zones or a frost-free UK microclimate.
In colder zones, grow it in a pot you can move under cover, or lift its tubers/roots and store them frost-free over winter.
A south-facing wall, free-draining soil and a dry winter position can push it a full zone hardier than the books suggest.

Work back from your local frost dates with the frost-date calculator: the last spring frost and first autumn frost are what really decide when flowering maple can be outside. US growers can check USDA zones; UK growers should use the RHS hardiness ratings, which match the H2 figure above.

Frost protection for borderline flowering maple

Flowering maple is right on a hardiness edge in many gardens, so if you are pushing it, these measures buy it the margin it needs:

Mulch the crown or root zone deeply with bark, straw or leaf-mould before the first hard frost.
Move container plants against a warm wall or into an unheated but frost-free porch or greenhouse.
Fleece the top growth on the coldest nights, and keep it on the dry side — dry roots survive cold far better than wet ones.
Lift dahlia-type tubers or tender crowns after the first light frost blackens the foliage and store them somewhere cool but frost-free.

Flowering maple hardiness — frequently asked questions

Is flowering maple cold hardy?

Flowering maple is half-hardy (RHS H2). It survives a mild winter outdoors in a sheltered spot, but a hard frost kills it — so in colder zones it is lifted, potted, or grown as a tender plant. Borderline outdoors. In its mild end of USDA 9-11 outdoors; grown as a houseplant or annual in cooler zones (and sheltered UK gardens) flowering maple can stay out; in colder areas it must be lifted, brought in, or treated as a frost-tender plant.

What is the minimum temperature flowering maple can survive?

Minimum survivable temperature is roughly about 1 to 5 °C — tolerates cold but no real frost. Flowering maple shrugs off cold nights but a real, sustained freeze will kill it.

What hardiness zone is flowering maple?

Flowering maple is rated USDA 9-11 outdoors; grown as a houseplant or annual in cooler zones and RHS H2 — Tender — survives a frost-free greenhouse or a very mild, sheltered spot.

Can flowering maple survive winter outside?

It can live outside year-round only in the mildest, most sheltered part of USDA 9-11 outdoors; grown as a houseplant or annual in cooler zones or a frost-free UK microclimate. In colder zones, grow it in a pot you can move under cover, or lift its tubers/roots and store them frost-free over winter. A south-facing wall, free-draining soil and a dry winter position can push it a full zone hardier than the books suggest.

How do I protect flowering maple from frost?

Mulch the crown or root zone deeply with bark, straw or leaf-mould before the first hard frost. Move container plants against a warm wall or into an unheated but frost-free porch or greenhouse. Fleece the top growth on the coldest nights, and keep it on the dry side — dry roots survive cold far better than wet ones. Lift dahlia-type tubers or tender crowns after the first light frost blackens the foliage and store them somewhere cool but frost-free.