Need help with potted Arabian Jasmine

[bcameron23]

Moved to Houston in June from Southern California with a small Arabian Jasmine in a plastic pot (that was a gift from my brother who passed).
Initially, the plant thrived and developed new growth, rich green leaves, and blossomed twice in the first three months I was here. It was hot and I had to water the plant every couple of days because the soil would dry out quickly. I kept the plant in the sunniest spot in my apartment, outside on a west facing balcony with a small awning. Initially I was concerned about not having enough direct light (its shaded until about 1pm) but the plant seemed to do well so I didn't fret.

But then the Jasmine starting turning yellow. Now the plant looks so ill I fear for it's survival. The leaves are small and yellowish and some of the tips have turned brown. At first I thought the plant was possibly going dormant, but it has been three+ months and it continues to deteriorate. I even tried coaxing with some dilute fertilizer two months ago but that failed to stop it's deterioration. There are no bugs that I can currently see (although I have seen some what I think were springtails after watering in the past).

My first thought was that I was over-watering the plant so I cut back--waaay back (as the soil retains moisture more than it did in the summer and I have even gone a couple weeks without watering). but that does not seem to help either.

I asks for your experience in resuscitating this Arabian jasmine with sentimental value. I don't know what the problem is. Not enough sun? It's been overcast ALOT the past months and I've had to bring the plant inside during several really cold streaks (but always near the window) OR too much fertilizer OR over/under-watering the plant.

Any advice you can impart would be greatly appreciated. I'll include some pics. Thank you.

[rainbowgardener]

I think your pot is considerably too small for your plant and you need to start over with a bigger pot and fresh potting mix. The soil gets depleted after awhile and needs to be replaced.

I had a jasmine in a container for several years, bringing it in for the winter in my climate. It did well for a long time and then started failing. When I took it out of the pot, I discovered it was so full of roots, there was hardly any soil left, and that was a much bigger pot than yours.

[applestar]

I think rainbowgardener is correct that it needs a bigger pot.
But it's also fussy about ideal temperature, humidity, and soil moisture, and spider mites is a real possibility.

My two Maid of Orleans are throwing fits and turning yellow right now too -- too dry, too wet, too cold.... Though one is trying to grow new shoots and bloom at the same time, and I think shedding the older leaves from last year. I tried giving them some epsom salt solution (1/2 tsp to 1 quart of tepid water) as spray and drench which is supposed to help them improve nitrogen uptake, and gave them some dilute organic fertilizer... Misting them more....

...I *think* I'm seeing a little bit of improvement on the larger plant. The smaller one is closer to the cold window and might still be a bit unhappy.

[bcameron23]

Thank you for your responses.
I will heed your advice and transfer it to a larger pot with some general use potting mix from Amazon.

And although I don't see spider-mites, I'll try spraying it with some miticide to see if that helps.

At this point I think hitting it from several angles is better as I don't want it to get any worse.

[applestar]

I dislike spraying -cides when not sure. Look very closely for fine webbing between leaf notes and stems and underneath the leaves for "powdery" appearance. Hold a white piece of paper under done leaves and flick and see if anything falls on the paper. If red or black particles fall on the paper, see if they smear when rubbed with fingertip.

If still not sure, I would only spray one section of the plant and see if there is an improvement rather than spraying the entire plant. Sometimes the sprays can *cause* problems, too.

I also most ALWAYS add a bit more granular substance that would improve drainage -- (I don't use perlite but many do), sand, pumice gravel, rice hulls, corn cob bedding, UltraSorb DE gravel is my latest experiment) -- maybe 1/8 to 1/4 of the mix depending on the plant.

[bcameron23]

February 15 Update:

So I repotted the Jasmine 11 days ago using some Organic Black Gold Potting soil I bought off Amazon. I added shards of broken clay pot in the bottom for excellent drainage. Overall, the Jasmine didn't look very root bound.

1 week ago I also started supplementing the light the Jasmine was getting in a west facing window with a hastily purchased 1) full spectrum CFL lightbullb and 2) Taotronic red/blue LED plant light. I also try and put it outside every afternoon in the direct sun when it is warm enough.

I have not seen much improvement however.

So I looked for mites again and it's difficult because the leaves look so poor (crinkled, small, yellowing, and just sad) There was 2-3 questionable white "specks" on underside of several leaves so I started spraying Garden Safe Fungicide3 insecticide two days ago. I figure at this point the plant wasn't improving and I wasn't convinced it was bug free.

Anybody have any further suggestions? I really don't want to lose this Jasmine!

And I greatly appreciate your help in taking the time to read and respond. THANK YOU SO MUCH! If any of you make it to Houston I'll bring you cookies!

[applestar]

It might still be recovering from the transplant "shock" and you may see improvement as the plant grows new roots into the new mix.

Since it hasn't harmed mine, you could try the VERY WEAK epsom salt spray and drench -- I use no more than 1/2 teaspoon per 1 pt filtered water, mixed well until completely dissolved. I sprayed thoroughly until dripping, then poured the rest at the base of the plant.

I am also misting the plant twice a day right now -- but this is because it is seriously cold outside at the moment and with the heater cranking constantly, interior RH% has dropped down to the 20's. I felt once a day thorough misting (that means spray all over it until dripping, wait about 5 minutes for the pores to open, then spray with extra fine mist from below and above so it's in a cloud of extra moisture rich air) in the morning was sufficient while the RH was still in the 40's. I have a container filled with water under the plant (which the kitties have accepted as their secondary water station BTW) but it doesn't seem to influence the RH% reading.

What IS the RH around this plant? If it seems too low, and you have a cool mist humidifier, you could put that to work instead of the daily misting. If you want to, you could get one of those personal humidifiers for office use that uses a water bottle as the reservoir.