![]() You are politely asked to mask as you walk to your table. Upon arrival there is a hand sanitizing station and a box of masks. I’m not a big masker but I really appreciated the courteous manner in which the management handled their customers’ care. Surely Harry Goulding will be looking down from that great hibiscus garden in the sky with a big smile on his face and perhaps thinking, "Well, it's about time.We had a superb dining experience last night. It's the first time that the society has held its annual meeting here. This week, June 17-20, the American Hibiscus Society is holding its annual meeting at the Best Western Waterfront Hotel, and the city is hosting a round of events during the stay. The city of Punta Gorda officially became the City of Hibiscus in 1926. "I liked the flower and decided to learn more about it." He asked him what they were, and learned they were hibiscus. One day he noticed some flowers growing in Capt. I learned about growing things from Capt. Jack had access to a rich man's library on board the yacht, where he was a captain. Harry Goulding was glad to oblige, but he wanted something in return - hibiscus secrets. Jack knew that I knew where to get it," Harry said. Jack McCann, who asked him to get him some bootleg whiskey. Goulding's love affair with the hibiscus began when he was on his way home one day from the docks where Fishermen's Village now stands. Harry Goulding said he used a special fertilizer mix that included "hair clippings from LaRue's Barbershop because the protein from the hair was good for the hibiscus." It was called the "Lady Adele" - a double-blossom pastel lavender. He called it the "Lovely Rea." The plant has 60 petals and is bright red with yellow edges.Īnother hybrid variety that he developed years ago was for then-Gov. One of the first hibiscus plants that he developed was named after his wife Reba. From that I developed the varieties that you see today." In an interview with Goulding shortly before his death in 1992, he said: "I traveled all over Florida in 1932 collecting 12 species of hibiscus. He won "The Best in the World" category five times at the National American Hibiscus Society's annual show. Many of the popular varieties of hibiscus flowers that grow all over Charlotte County today can be traced to Goulding. The hibiscus plants were grown in his yard at his home on Retta Esplanade, where he and his wife Reba lived until they died. Hybrids like my grandfather grew had to be grown in special containers and soil."Īny one who has lived in Charlotte County for any length of time cannot say the word "hibiscus" without saying Harry Goulding. ![]() "I've had the most success with the red hibiscus, (the Punta Gorda), the flower of the city of Punta Gorda. "The hybrids don't usually grow well in yards," Brit said. "He destroyed thousands of hibiscus every year, if he didn't like the flower it produced, he destroyed it and never grew it again.īrit grows a variety of hibiscus in his yard, but he says they are not the hybrid varieties that his grandfather grew. "He never knew what his cross pollination would produce, until it grew. "I liked going in the backyard and watching him cross pollinate the flowers," he continued. "Grandpa said that the hibiscus cannot make seed, unless assisted by man. "My grandfather told me that the hibiscus plant could not exist without the help of man," Brit said. "I loved listening to my grandfather's yarns that he would tell about Punta Gorda."īecause his grandfather spent hours every day in the yard with his hibiscus plants, Brit also learned about growing hibiscus. "He had people from all over the world calling him or coming to see him to learn more about growing hibiscus."īrit Goulding, who lives in the historic section of downtown Punta Gorda with his family, remembers spending almost every day at his grandfather Harry Goulding's house when he was younger. "He was one of the most knowledgeable hybridizers in the world. "My father grew over 2,000 seedlings every year," Joe said. He also remembers that one of his chores on Saturday was to weed the hibiscus gardens, something he did not really enjoy doing. ![]() Joe Goulding remembers his father as being an avid reader and a very intelligent man. He figured that during his 60 years of developing hybrid hibiscus plants that he produced more than 60,000 hibiscus plants - about 1,000 a year. Harry Goulding was an accountant, a rum runner, a fisherman and a world renowned, award-winning hibiscus grower. ![]()
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