Question
I have 4 Rose of Sharon and they have done beautifully until this year.  The
blossoms wouldn't open up completely and the leaves didn't appear to ever fully
mature.  They basically looked sick all season. We had a very wet spring and a
short summer. I have looked on the leaves and see no signs of mildew or
fungus.  Any ideas?

Answer
Bonnie:
Doesn't sound like a disease to me either. A couple of things to consider checking out. Take a look at the base of the plants for any sort of physical injury (i.e. damaged bark). Any excavations that may have damaged the roots? There is a tiny insect called a thrips that can get into the flower and prevent it from opening/developing completely. These are tiny (1/16 inch) and very fast crawling/flying. You will have to manually open the flower and watch closely as you do this, since they can run fast.  They are often deep within the petal bases. If you see these, an insecticide may be called for. Check with your local nursery/garden center for some choices.  They may be able to check a few unopened blooms for you if you carried them into the store.

Another possibility may be associated with the wet soils and possible related fertilizer imbalances.  This may be a temporary condition related to the wet soil conditions if rains were very frequent.  Having your soil tested may be advisable. A test will identify which, if any nutrients may be deficient.

Regards
Steve