Plants just aren't healthy

[Kathleen]

Hello and thank you to everyone who helped me with my potting soil question a couple of months ago.  I wish I could say all my problems are solved, but that sadly  isn't the case. I have been using HVH fertilizer @ 1/2 tsp per gallon, Super Nova 1/2 tsp per gallon, and Hibiscus Booster 1/2 tsp per gallon, with every watering.  I have also been VERY careful about how much water I give.  They all seemed to respond great at first. Started to get new leaves, new blooms and new branches coming up from the bottom of the plant.  About two weeks ago they all started to go down hill again.  The first thing to go was the new growth.  It started to wilt and eventually the new stems died.  One of the plants that was starting to do so well now sits there, nearly a bare stick.  Three of the others are almost as bad.  They look like they have a different problem though.  Their leaves turn brown starting at the edges and then eventually turn completely brown and fall off.  The interesting thing about these plants is that they are all three the same variety ...Stolen Kiss .... First Kiss ..... and Hugs and Kisses.  It looks a lot to me like fertilizer burn, but if that is the case, why wouldn't all the plants be reacting the same?

Also, I live in central Florida and spring is rapidly approaching.  I want to repot using a better quality soil in early March.  I think (thanks to all the help I got from all of you on this forum) I know what potting mixture to use, but I don't know "how" to repot.  Should I just go up a pot size and fill in the space with the new potting mix, or should I try to remove the old soil from the roots? Should I even try to repot these sick plants or just leave them alone until I can get them stabilized?

Thanks again for all your help.  I would probably give up if I didn't have this resource.

Kathleen

[Charlie]

Hmmm, this is a puzzler. From the names I can guess that these Dupont varieties were all grown by a big wholesale grower in Florida and should be in soil that is decent for Florida. Are these plants outside or inside? Winter can be especially tough on outside potted plants in Florida. What size pot are they in? If bigger than 1 gallon I would not change the pot until they start growing well again. If in 1 gallon its a toss up - you could pot them up a size or wait and see.  Are you sure you are watering them enough? Fertilizer burn and wilting leaves can be caused by lack of water. I would take the root ball out of the pot and look for the water line on the soil. After watering there should actually be no water line as all the soil will be soaked.

You can post photos if you like - sometimes it is easier to figure out what is going on that way.

Charlie

[Bradley]

Kathleen,

I live in Jacksonville and have the two of those hibiscus you mentioned, First Kiss and Hugs and Kisses. For me personally, once I switched all my potted plants into a high quality coca-coir type soil, my plants took off.

Also, are your pots indoors or outdoors? If they are outdoors what you described sounds like a touch of Jack Frost nipping at your plants. I know it freezes down as far south as Orlando sometimes so if they are outdoors, watch your local weather forecast. I have the Weather Channel app on my I-Phone that gives me a freeze warning and then I cover my in-ground plants. My potted ones are inside my Florida room for the winter.

[Maureenpm00]

anyone know where we can buy this coca-coir locally?

[Merkity]

i found some in a local hydroponics shop in my area, you might try looking for something like that.  not sure if you find it in the big box stores or not...

[Maureenpm00]

thanks Merkity

[Kathleen]

Thanks Charlie and Bradley.  I don't know which it is, fertilizer burn or frost, but at least one of the plants seems to be recovering....the other one is still in question.  The plants are in pots and I bring them into the Florida room if the overnight temperature is forecasted to fall below 50 deg.  There may have been a night or two early in the winter where I didn't bring them in because I thought it has to fall much lower than that to cause damage.  Which ever it is, I'm just glad that I might be able to save at least one of the plants.  I am planning to repot in the next couple of weeks with better potting mix.  How exactly do I do this?   Do I just put the plant into a larger pot, or should I try to remove some of the old soil from the roots?  And, how long after I repot should I wait to start fertilizing, or do I start right away?

Thank for any and all input.

Kathleen

[Bradley]

The only store I have found a good quality potting soil at is ACE Hardware because each one is franchised and they all have different stuff, mine has a soil called Ocean Forest by Fox Farms (expensive but well worth it in the long run). If you go to Fox Farms website, they have a store finder which will tell you where there products can be found in your area.

On this website is a Hibiscus Care section I have found very valuable, to the left of this screen. However, long story short, don't take any soil off the roots when you repot, you could do more damage than good. I personally would go light (not none) on the fertilizer for a week or two. A lot of the better quality soils, like Fox Farms, are premixed with goodies like worm castings, green sand, and other organic fertilizers.

[Kyle]

Last year I transplanted a sick hibiscus and all it did was kill it faster.    All I did was waste 2 gals of fine Hvh potting media.    Seems like when a hibiscus reaches the point of no return, it's best to move on and not waste anymore time and resources.       

[Ellen]

I found coco coir and worm castings on amazon; Still can't match Charlie's potting soil tho, and when I am feeling not too broke will spring for paying to ship it to the east coast.

Things I've done to effectively kill my hibiscus.  Not get serious about spider mites because I can't see them until it is too late (spider mites are my winter head banger)  Leave the pots in saucers when they're inside in the winter and not immediately emptying  the saucers.  Underwatering during the winter in an effort to avoid the above problem.  Potting up a plant that isn't healthy.  Putting a plant in a pot too big for it (they do not seem to mind being root bound at all).  Trying to revive a drooping plant with water, except that sometimes, if it is a more hardy variety, I can sit it in a sink with the drain open and water it thoroughly every couple of hours but let it drain thoroughly every time.

Things I have found that sometimes work on an hibiscus I murdered:  Gibberellins - Nature's Wake-Up Call.