i have just started gardening this year and everything in my garden is growing like crazy!!!! the only problem i have is i have a lot of things i have tried to grow in containers and all of them die. herbs veggies flowers, sheesh it is like a epidemic of dead plants. the roses are turning a brown color and dieing. the veggies got a pale yellow/green and died. and the herbs just shriveled up and croaked. i live in the high desert in arizona and it reaches 100 degrees most days. and am at 5000 ft. have the same dirt in the containers i have in the ground. and again everything in the ground is growin like CRAZY, and so if anyone has any ideas what is going on i would appreciate the help before i try putting something new in.
thanks
Will
/need Some HELP!
Will:
Your first problem is using garden soil in containers. You should use a potting or container mix. It usually contains peat,pearlite or vermulite and compost. Use a time release fertilizer such as Oscomocote. Keep them watered but do not over water. Make sure your containers have drainage holes in the bottom.
I think if you do that your sucess rate will improve.
Paul
Will,
Another good piece of advise is to make sure you start with clean pots! I give my pots a washing with bleach at the end of everyseason. I've grown tomatoes in old trash cans. If you wash the container with bleach let it sit for a day or so before planting in it.
Donna
Depending on the size of the pots, container gardens usually need more water as it dries out faster, esp. in 100 degree weather. Also, make sure that water reaches the roots because sometimes, the soil dries out and water just trickles out of the drainage holes but never reaches the roots.
Hi Will - This is also my first season of gardening, everything's in containers, and we had 4 days of 100-degree heat recently. You have to water A LOT! I was amazed. The first day, I soaked everything at about 9am. When I came home at 4pm, almost everything was wilted and suffering. Killed my dill entirely (it dried itself! sort of convenient, now that I think about it), but everything else perked up when watered thoroughly and given some shade for the rest of the day. The sun was just too much, and even the full-sun plants needed a break in the shade. The next few 100-degree days, my housemate graciously watered and moved them while I was at work. BTW, everything's in moisture-control potting mix, and many are mulched.
Best wishes to you and your plants. Hang in there...I know you can make them happy.
One of the brands of the moister holding pellets is "Soil Moist" they work very well. The are a polymer that expands to 10-12 times its size when moistened. Remember follow the instructions a little goes a long way.
Paul
In my poverty-stricken student state, cash flow for plant upkeep is at a minimum. I recently bought a cheap wooden window box for some unruly philodendrons. To keep it from drying out too quickly, I lined it with a garbage bag, and punched a few holes in the bottom of the bag. The holes allow the soil to drain, but the plastic keeps the moisture in, so the soil stays moist without being waterlogged. A possible alternative...
pisces