Hello everyone, Two years ago a purchased a beautiful planter, one of those new ones that look like cement but is very light. I am not sure what they are made out of, someone told me fiberglass, it almost feels spongy. I am sure everyone knows which ones I am talking about, they are available most anywhere plants are sold. My problem is that I am having trouble growing impatiens in them. I thought the first year the problem was because of my dirt. I used Miracle Grow potting medium. I did put three holes in the bottom of the plant and also put some clay shards on the bottom for good drainage. The impatiens do not grow well and hardly flowered at all. I gave them Bloom Plus throughout the season to no avail. The second year I changed the soil and put in all new soil, thinking maybe that was the problem. Could the problem be that what the planter is made out of is leaching into the soil? Does anyone know what can be causing this, or should I just try another type of plant? I was thinking coleus as the area I have the planter gets more shade than sun, at the back of my house. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Help please. Problem growing in a fiberglass planter
First, I'll just say I don't think it's the material the planter is made of. But here are a couple other possibilities:
--Have you successfully grown impatiens in another type of container in that same location (with the same potting soil and fertilizer)? It could be that your amount of sun/shade or temperature is not ideal for them in that location.
--Any chance the plants were over-watered? I don't think those planters "breathe" like terra cotta pots do, so it's probably easy to overwater them if you're used to the terra cotta pots
--Maybe they were overfertilized between the Miracle Grow soil which has fertilizer and the Bloom Booster you gave them. Although if that was the case, I would have expected lots of growth but no flowers, and your description sounds like they weren't growing either
--Poor drainage...Maybe the 3 drainage holes weren't enough--without seeing the size of the pot and the size of the holes it's hard to tell.
--One other possibility is the clay shards that you put in the pot--I've seen other threads, I think on this forum that putting clay shards or other stuff in the bottom of a pot actually can create problems rather than solving them (I think it was something like there's always this layer right at the bottom of a pot where the soil stays very wet, and when you put clay shards or something else in the bottom of the pot, it moves that very wet layer up higher in the container, probably in your plants' root zones which leaves them with wet feet constantly).
ecrane3, Thank you for your suggestions. I have grown impatiens in the same spot/same soil/fertilizer (different pot), so I am going to take your advice and remove the shards and put in additional holes and see what happens. I understand that the "breathing" of the container is not the same as clay (terracotta). As I have grown impatiens for about 15 years or so, it is very obvious when they need water or have too much so I don't believe that is what the problem is, but the "wet feet" with the shards might be. Thanks again.
Gardenbeads - We've had problems with impatiens before too. We always grow them in the same pots every year and sometimes for some reason they just don't grow. When this happened we have noticed lot of fruit flys in the dirt but I don't know if that happened for you........maybe our problem is completly different. We could never figure out for sure what is was though. Sorry I couldn't be of much help...
Steve
Thank you again Steve. I think I'm going to try the coleus and see how that does...like you said maybe it is just one of those things...by the way, what part of southern Ontario do you live in if you don't mind my asking? Maybe we aren't that far apart, I'm in SE Michigan, about 10-15 minutes from the border. Probably one of your closer gardening neighbors from the states. I will let you know what happens with the coleus.
You're Welcome! We tried coleus, in one of our planters last summer where impatens had failed and they did great. I look forward to hearing how they do for you :) The closest U.S border to us is Buffalo NY and it's about an hour away. Maybe it's silly, but I don't really like saying exactly where I am :)
Steve
Steve, no that's not silly, I was only asking for a region, not exactly where you live. We all have to be safe on the internet. I completely understand and that is why I said "if you don't mind" in case you didn't want to say. Guess I was thinking southwest in Ontario, my mistake because I am southeast Michigan. Nice chatting with you. Happy gardening.
Yes, it was nice chatting with you too! I hope your coleus turn out well for you :D
Happy gardening to you too :)
Steve
GB I had the same problem with the type of planter you had. I've only used it for one summer, but I don't think I will even pot things in there this year. I put geraniums in it and they just sat there -they were the same size in Sept as they were in June. gorgeous pot too - what a shame...
I wonder.........could it have something to do with soil temps? Maybe the soil sometimes get too warm with the fiberglass...or not warm enough? just a thought....
Sarv, I'm glad to hear from someone who has had the same problem. Yes, the planter is very beautiful but I'm not giving up yet. I am also going to try asking at my favorite nursery, they might know as they sell lots of those types of pots.
SW gardener, that is another thought. I think maybe the soil is not warm enough. I noticed today that there is some green moss growing on the soil. I did have the planter outside all winter though. Like I said earlier, I had impatiens in it and those love the warmth. Good thinking SW!! So, I am going to try the coleus now for sure. I will get to the bottom of this yet thanks to all of you.
I hope you get them to grow well this year. Maybe the pots should be set in the hot sun for a few days prior to planting to help them warm up? I don't know though...Would that make a difference?
Steve
Gardenbeads,
I DID respond to your D-mail. Now I am reading all these comments and the only one that seems relavent is that there may be too much soil in these large containers so that it never gets to the "almost dry to the touch" phase that plants like--where oxygen can enter the soil mix so the roots cana "breathe". I think if plants sit in an always wet soil, they will not doo well.
However, how would THIS type of pot differ from a plastic pot? Neither of them breathes! Perhaps you could add some filler half way up in your pot like styrofoam packing peanuts, plastic "Easter" eggs....(YES! Someone actually suggested that!) or, and this makes sense, another pot INVERTED inside the bottom half of the pot to "lighten the load". This, I think, was aimed more at a heavy clay pot, as they are impossible to move once filled with dirt.
SO! Basically----I have NO idea what the problem may be??? Maybe do not water until the top 2"-3" of the soil feel dry to the touch?
Have you been mulching it? With WHAT? Consider that also.
Well--I am at a loss! Gita