wilting plant overwater or lack of water please help

[priscilla384]

I am very sure I watered too much to the extent of the water flowing out of the drainage holes of the pot of diameter 8-10cm. The next day(monday) the plant became soft, mushy, drooping , still green. I checked online forums and they said to leave it alone for a few days. I watered two sprays for three days just in case since its really warm during the afternoons. Moreover, it was raining on monday and yesterday. Instead, it became dry and crispy, brown at the edges today, unlike monday. So did I over water or is it because there's too little water? Please and thanks for helping^^

[applestar]

Tell us WHAT the plant is.

Also, when the water came out of the drainage holes (which in itself is fine and how you SHOULD be watering), did the water puddle in the catch tray/pot saucer, and did you leave the pot soaking in the water without emptying it? Did this happen when it rained too? How many hours was the plant sitting in water?

...once root damage has occurred, the vascular system could be interrupted, remaining roots can no longer support/supply water to the plant, and the plant will show same/similar symptoms of insufficient water.

[priscilla384]

Tell us WHAT the plant is.

Also, when the water came out of the drainage holes (which in itself is fine and how you SHOULD be watering), did the water puddle in the catch tray/pot saucer, and did you leave the pot soaking in the water without emptying it? Did this happen when it rained too? How many hours was the plant sitting in water?

...once root damage has occurred, the vascular system could be interrupted, remaining roots can no longer support/supply water to the plant, and the plant will show same/similar symptoms of insufficient water.

I don't know the plant to be honest. I bought it randomly because there was a sale. I will attach the picture though.

There is no pot saucer. The soil was dry actually the next day except when I watered and the rain. But I'm in Singapore and the weather is really warm. The soil dries really quickly when watered.

The soil was damp after the water flowed out of the drainage holes but excess water already flowed out. I don't think it sat in the water for long, maybe one night??? I didn't check the plant when it was raining since I was sleeping. I only checked the plant that day after 12 hours. At that time, it didn't turn brown yet but the leaves were definitely not soft and mushy like the day before but like normal dry.

Could it be possible that in an attempt to dry the plant I ended up giving too little water since I didn't check on it for hours when it could have revived and then wilt due to a lack of water soon after within 12 hours? I guess I sound ridiculous. Sorry, I am a beginner:)

Before I forget, does adding fertiliser when the plant is over watered affect the plant? I added it after over watering. Could it be because of that?

Thanks for helping^^ I really appreciate it!

[imafan26]

It looks to have been over watered and the pot sat in a saucer with the water in it for a while. If you water a plant, do it in a sink or tub and drain it on a rack. A cooling rack works good for that before putting it back on the saucer. Put some pebbles in the saucer too to keep the plant up out of any water that might be in the bottom. If your pot is plastic or only has one drain hole, it is best to use a faster draining mix. Your mix looks organic but may not contain enough minerals to help it drain. I use 50% or more perlite or cinders in my pots since I water daily.

The plant could be a coleus. They come in many colors. They are very susceptible to rot when over watered.
They are good houseplants and relatively easy to grow.

http://www.clemson.edu/extension/hgic/p ... c1162.html

[priscilla384]

It looks to have been over watered and the pot sat in a saucer with the water in it for a while. If you water a plant, do it in a sink or tub and drain it on a rack. A cooling rack works good for that before putting it back on the saucer. Put some pebbles in the saucer too to keep the plant up out of any water that might be in the bottom. If your pot is plastic or only has one drain hole, it is best to use a faster draining mix. Your mix looks organic but may not contain enough minerals to help it drain. I use 50% or more perlite or cinders in my pots since I water daily.

The plant could be a coleus. They come in many colors. They are very susceptible to rot when over watered.
They are good houseplants and relatively easy to grow.

http://www.clemson.edu/extension/hgic/p ... c1162.html

Thanks for the link!

I don't have a saucer under the pot. The pot has 8 drainage holes. But the soil is the clayey type. I checked soil moisture of one inch deep into the soil. Really dry.

Is it possible for leaves to look fried dried rather than soft and mushy when over watered? What should I do from here? Leave it alone or water it as it's too dry already (four days since I over watered and soil is super dry now) ?

Thanks for your help

[evtubbergh]

Stick your finger in, is it dry deeper down? If it is, then water it. Not sure about the solution exactly as I don't know what it is. It should probably be moist at all times but never soaking for long periods. You could try replacing the soil with a good potting soil.

[priscilla384]

Stick your finger in, is it dry deeper down? If it is, then water it. Not sure about the solution exactly as I don't know what it is. It should probably be moist at all times but never soaking for long periods. You could try replacing the soil with a good potting soil.

It's dry. But I watered it this morning and now, it's still wilting rather than helping. Is it okay to change the soil while it's wilting? How should I know what I should do now to salvage the plant? Water it (even though it didn't help) or leave it alone? Is the symptoms for overwatering and underwatering the same? As in having leaves that are crisp and dry? Since roots that are rotting cannot take in water. Thanks a lot^^

[applestar]

It's not looking good -- It has visibly deteriorated.

The plant doesn't look like coleus to me, but some kind of a plant I would normally associate with a houseplant here. So I would think clay soil woud very bad for it.

Dried crispy leaves will not recover. You may as well remove them (clip off rather than pulling off unless they readily fall off on their own). In the first photo, I would have said the top two leaves look like thy have a chance to recover, but I'm not sure at this point, looking at the newer photo.

I don't remember if you mentioned -- is this a new plant? Was it in a sunny location when you bought it? If not, did you put it in a sunny location when you brought it home? Was it in planted in this clay soil originally? Did you say you are feeding weekly (full strength? -- this could well be too much fertilizer) Fertilizing when a plant is stressed is very bad for it, though it is a common reaction by new gardeners when a plant starts to fail in some way. (Do you feel like eating a feast when you are sick?)

I'm thinking if it is truly a clay type soil, I would risk repotting it at this point even though normally, you don't want to repot stressed plants.

Do we suspect some kind of disease like wilt? Ideally, it should be reported in completely fresh new soil mix and the container should be scrubbed clean.

Clay soil can be mixed with coarse sand/small gravel/Perlite and shredded coco coir to make it more fluffy and drain well. Pre moisten the potting mix thoroughly so it clumps then fall apart when handful is held in a fist. You should NOT be able to squeeze out any water.

After removing the soil and plant by turning the pot upside down, supporting the soil and plant and gently squeezing the plastic pot or thumping the bottom, you can keep the soil mass from drying out by putting it in a plastic bag while you clean the pot.

When ready, gently work loose (massage) the clay soil to remove it and expose the roots a bit, then place some of the new soil mix in the bottom of the container, put the root ball in, and fill will the soil ix while supporting theolant upright. Thump the container down a couple of times to settle the soil mix, then top to about 1/2" from the rim of the pot by mounding and gently/lightly pressing down -- don't compress too much. Set in a larger container with about 1" of water for 1/2 hr, then remove from the water.

Water after a day and heft the container to get the feel for watered pot. Keep in filtered sun for about a week and water again when hefting feels light (and finger in the soil feels dry-ish but not bone dry) -- I estimate in about 3-4 days, though in heavy humidity, it may take longer aa maybe a whole week. Right now the plant won't be taking up any water. Don't fertilize until you start to see new signs of growth, and only 1/4 strength.

It's imperative to ID this plant so you will know the ideal care to give it though. Are the leaves thick? Fuzzy or shiny smooth? Flat or rippled like seer-sucker fabric? Is it correct that the leaves grow in opposite pairs? ...it's very hard to tell,but at the moment, the coloring and shape of the leaves reminds me of Persian Shield plant.
http://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/ ... hield.html
http://www.logees.com/Persian-Shield/pr ... o/R1570-2/

[imafan26]

Some plants cannot handle soil being over watered or going completely dry. A lot of it is about learning how to water. Rainbow had some good advice on how to tell if your plant needs watering. As to if it recovers, it depends on if the roots are still viable. The only other thing that I can think of that would make leaves shrivel like that would be if the plant was not hardened off to the light or was to close to the window. Colored leaves usually require more light but plants in general will burn if they are up against a window without a sheer curtain in front of it or moved from relatively low light to bright light suddenly.

[evtubbergh]

So how did it go?