Too Much Water?

[rcjolley]

I was SO happy this year! It's the 1st year my plants didn't get annihilated by white flies... BUT 3 of hibiscus got a sudden case of wilted leaves. These 3 are the ONLY ones in self-watering pots. I have a moisture meter which I was using weekly to determine if the plants needed water, then I'd water just enough to moisten the top couple of inches. I had someone looking after them while I was away, and noticed that near the bottom of the pot, the moisture meter went nearly off the scale! Now, these may not come back, but is the basic problem the self-watering pot? If so, I'll make it a point to avoid putting hibiscus in them...
Thanks...

[Charlie]

It's not really possible to say for sure, but since all 3 plants in these pots have the same problem at the same time it is likely that water is the issue. The key to using self watering pots successfully is to learn to check the reservoir that holds the water before refilling. The reservoir needs to completely dry out before it is refilled. We've used this type of pot with great success but found that if the reservoir is constantly filled the lower levels of soil stay too wet.

The other thing that could effect all 3 plants at the same time is if they were moved to a place that was colder or sunnier than they were used to during the winter. They should recover if this was the case. In springtime always re-introduce hibiscus to the outdoors carefully, allowing the plants to get conditioned to the temperature and light levels before leaving them out all the time.

Charlie