kristalz
Newly Registered
Posts: 2
Joined: Sat Aug 06, 2016 3:39 am

Tips & Help with my new flowers

Hello, 1st of all I live in Spain, and we wanted a few flowers to decorate our balcony, so went to the shop and asked for flowers that would be fine in an all day summer sunshine and we got these: (all photos are from before (1 month ago) and from today)
IMG-20160806-WA0001.jpg
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They told us to water them morning and evening, and we also have given them food stuff, but they just... look so bad... they cost me a fortune so if anyone knows how to save them, please tell me!! thanks!

nltaff
Senior Member
Posts: 142
Joined: Sun Apr 03, 2016 9:02 am
Location: Central NY (rural) Zone 5

Hi kristalz, and welcome to the forum! I have one word for you: HEAT! Your pots might be bigger, as they look too small for the plants, but overall, the environment they are living in is dehydrating them. The ceramic and terra cotta pots are wicking water from the roots and the concrete balcony is radiating heat that is robbing them of water as well. You may not like the look of plastic pots, but re-potting into larger, light colored plastic pots would help your plants immensely. Also, there are potting soils designed to hold moisture. There are soil additives that hold water, and some people use sponges at the bottom of pots to hold water. You might look into the glass balls that hold water and have a spout that you stick into the soil so that moisture slowly drains into the root area over a short period of time. They will come back (maybe not bottom left, but try anyway) if you can give them consistent moisture and lessen the effects of the hot, sunny environment.

kristalz
Newly Registered
Posts: 2
Joined: Sat Aug 06, 2016 3:39 am

I never ever thought that the pots mattered at all!! They did come in smaller plastic pots and we just transplanted them into the ceramics ones,had no idea about this info!! I will go out and buy some new stuff this afternoon. Also, do you think I should prune the plants? I've read some places that they say to cut down to the core of the plant and hope they grow back.. :/ and again, thanks a lot!!

nltaff
Senior Member
Posts: 142
Joined: Sun Apr 03, 2016 9:02 am
Location: Central NY (rural) Zone 5

Yes, prune them back slightly. And you might try to provide them with some shade while they recover and gradually take the shade away. Within a week, you should see which plant parts are not going to recover and you can remove those parts. A wet towel, draped over the balcony railing might provide some shade, and would add some moisture to the air (I'd clamp it though, because once it dries out, it might blow away). Most gardener's say not to exceed 2-3" larger when increasing pot size. Best of luck!

ButterflyLady29
Greener Thumb
Posts: 1030
Joined: Mon Oct 19, 2015 9:12 pm
Location: central Ohio

The petunia (1st on left) is dead. I would be very surprised if it could be brought back. The middle 2 are either dipladenia or mandevilla, can be salvaged by potting into larger pots. I wouldn't put them in anything smaller than 12 inch or 42 cm diameter pots. The one on the right is a platycodon and also needs a larger pot.

I personally think it's a waste of time and soil to keep potting and potting. If you want to put a 3 inch pot into a 12 inch container then just do it. You just have to be more careful about watering, not too wet and not too dry.

imafan26
Mod
Posts: 13947
Joined: Tue Jan 01, 2013 8:32 am
Location: Hawaii, zone 12a 587 ft elev.

Petunias are annuals anyway so they don't live forever.
The blue platycodon is a perennial that can tolerate a bit of shade but likes well drained soil. It is a summer bloomer so I think it looks o.k., it may just be at the end of its bloom season. Don't forget to fertilize.

The name of the plant with the large flowers is mandevilla. It is a vine native to Brazil. It is not frost tolerant so needs to go inside if it gets below 50 degrees F. 50 or 10 C. It is a climbing plant so it will get longer so it will eventually need a stake to climb on. It is a summer bloomer.

Most perennials are not year round bloomers. Annuals are good for seasonal color but they typically do not last more than a couple of months. Sunflowers will only be in bloom for 10 days before they are done.

Terra cotta is not that much of a problem especially if plants want to be well drained. However, I would recommend a sip system so the neighbors don't complain when the water drips off your balcony. Self watering containers have water reservoirs so you only have to make sure the reservoirs are filled before they empty so you won't have to water twice a day. you can make a water guage with a clear plastic tube so you can see the level of the reservoir so you get less overflow.
auto pot
https://www.silive.com/homegarden/index. ... -free.html
homemade self wicking pots or SIP
https://deepgreenpermaculture.com/diy-I ... king-beds/
https://www.postoilsolutions.org/documents/Earthbox.pdf

Plants that bloom a long time and can handle pots and heat

alyssum - annual but reseeds and can be sheared back 6-8 inches
blue daze - low groundcover. Perennial. Great if you are a morning person. Azure blue flowers but they fold up once the sun comes out.
Palms Tall fronds can provide some shade from the sun. Can be indoors sometimes, but does better outside.
Petunias - annuals. Good for summer bloom. then they die
Lavendins - Lavender likes zone 5-8 with only minimal frosts and temps less than 80 degrees. But the lavendins can handle higher temps. if they have some summer shade. They like well drained slighly alkaline soil The edible lavenders only bloom for a short time in summer but the landscape lavender multifida is a zone 10 lavender that blooms nearly all year round with fern like leaves. It smells musky and is not edible.
Pineapple- Pineapples are bromeliads but they like the sun. Just remember to water in the cups.
Succulents- Jade, burro tail (sedum morganinum)
bougainvillea- summer bloomer.
cuphea (false heather)
roses ( they will bloom in 6 week cycles) They are high maintenance and require regular pruning feeding and pest/disease control.
Herbs- Some will bloom but good for flavoring foods
Hibiscus - Spring and summer blooms Minimum temp 50 degrees otherwise it needs to go inside during winter.
Hot peppers - Ornamental and edible

There are a few choices. Some will work better than others. The main thing is not to crowd the plants. The number of plants you have now is good. There is enough room for the air to circulate around them. You can put them on stands so they are on different levels.



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