This isn't doing well, perhaps too much shade?
Heucherella Sunspot not doing well
It's a little hard to tell from the photo but does it look unwell up close or is it just small and slow-growing? How much sun is it getting and what time of day? Dry shade or damp?
I find I've had to move a few things around just to find the "right spot" so to speak so that might be what you need to do. Your other plants look alright from here though.
Erynne
Thanks Erynne, I guess I'd better move it then. It just doesn't look very healthy and happy to me but I've never had Sunspot before. The photos I've seen look more vigorous.
Hi Katy,
I have a similar looking one called "Strike it Rich Gold" and had to move it to a spot where it got just a tad more sun because to me it just didn't look like it was a happy camper. Now, a couple weeks later, it's starting to fill out a wee bit more but this is what worked for me here in my zone. I think these might be slower to get established anyway compared to the heucheras which are growing by leaps and bounds. I honestly don't know if I want more heucherellas because of my impatience,lol.
That's a much better photo you have there and I agree about it not looking as it does in other photos. I know....frustrating eh!
I wonder if anyone else has less-than-expected output from their heucherellas?
Erynne
Katy,
In my experience at least in my zone, I have found the lighter ones like a bit more sun. Not sure in your zone tho. I would pull that baby and get her in a bit more sun tho,,,at least it's worth a try. Good Luck
Kelly
I'm going to move it and cross my fingers. Thanks!
Katy,
I'll cross my finger for you too,,,lol
Hi Katy,
Did you get a chance to move Sunspot yet? Hope it's doing better.
Here's a pic of the heucherella I mentioned above that I've placed in a slightly sunnier position. It did not look this good a few weeks ago so I think I made a good choice. It very quickly has sent up flower stalks too!
Erynne,
Looks great. I Still have to move my Amber Waves,,,poor thing will be dead by the time I get to moving it.
Erynne, yes I did move the Sunspot and it's seemed to perk up. Hope that's not just wishful thinking, LOL. Clouded up and started raining this afternoon and rain is forecast for the rest of the week. I know the plants can benefit from the sun even through the clouds so I'll take pics again when it dries a bit. Thank you to all who advised me. Hope I can help you some day!
Katy - is your Heuchera less than 3 years old? I have seen an incredible difference in the size of ours when they are fully grown. Usually, after the second year, they are almost mid size. Some put on more, some a little less, but that is the average measurement I see. Usually after the third growing season the plant would have put on full growth. Well that's my experience anyway, but I wanted to throw that out to you in case you have a baby in there, maybe time is all it needs.
Thanks Sue. You're right it a baby. But it wasn't the size it was the general unhealthy appearance I was worrying about. I have others the same size and they're perky, this one just drooped. Sad. Here it if now, just after a rain. Perky! LOL
Katy,
Looks like it likes it's new location a bit better,,,I see new leaves coming. Looking good.
Kelly
Help- I planted my Sunspot last year and it didnt do well, but I kept it alive. I thought it may have done poorly because of the hot summer we had.
This year it came back great. It looked healthy and happy. I just mulched a week ago and it looks terrible again. The bottom leaves are brown and wilting. Could it be the black mulch absorbs too much heat? My other heucheras (Obsidian & Lime Rickey) right next to Sunspot are fine so far. They were new last year too but they are three times bigger this year.
I should also mention that in that same garden I have a one year old Stoplight that is doing great. I have trouble telling them apart, Stoplight and Sunspot. It is a good thing I had them labeled this spring, but they look nothing alike now.
I have them in morning shade and dappled afternoon sun.
Photo of one sad plant.
Does anyone have any ideas about this?
Try a bit more sun, mine seems to appreciate it. I haven't got that bed mulched yet, waiting until I can put my co-op plants in.
Speaking of difficulty getting Sunspot to be happy, I have two of them purchased at the same time and placed side by side in a sunny part of the garden. They were planted two years ago. One of them is doing very well & is very happy. Its twin, however, did poorly last summer, and now has shrunk to almost nothing. Any ideas? Perhaps it just goes to demonstrate the differences between individuals even in the same family (like people)? Thanks for listening!
Now that would drive me nuts! Batya, the mysteries of gardening, lol.
You know, this has all got me thinking and wondering. We see these new & fancy hybridized plants and we want them! We bring them home and provide what we believe to be the ideal environment and then all of a sudden disappointment sets in. This is what I tend to think to myself:
"What went wrong? I did everything supposedly right or did I? Oh no, it can't be the plant; it must be me."
I think I have to get out of this mindset. Some of these plants are so "new" to the market. Sure the trials are done and given ratings that incite confidence but what really happens when the plants hit the markets at large where thousands are now installing these plants in their gardens? That's where issues start to crop up I believe. Just like drug trials....all looks good....and then several years later when it reaches the patient population....whamo!
So with this said, and I'm not saying anyone here has a good plant or bad plant, just maybe we have to really watch for ourselves how these plant perform and report amongst ourselves our experiences.
I hope everyone will keep up with their heucherellas' progress because it's good info.
rsquared, maybe it's the mulch??? You said she was happy before so maybe heucherellas don't like that mulch too near them? Pull it back from the plant and please let us know what happens. So many factors to consider eh!
Katy....way perkier indeed!! Glad to hear it!
This message was edited Jun 5, 2006 10:53 AM
This is interesting; my 'Sunspot' is doing the same thing. It gets some afternoon sun, so I thought perhaps I should move it to a spot with morning sun and afternoon shade. The tips of the mature leaves are browning and the new growth looks bleached out, almost white.
I am finding what one heuchera or heucherella likes, another may not. Sure makes it tricky to plan.
Yes, it does make it tricky. With those 3, Heuchera, Heucherella and Tiarella you really have to play it by ear,,,no planning for them,,LOL Especially Heuchera
edited for spelling and clarity
This message was edited Jun 21, 2006 8:16 AM
I live in the south and my sunspot is sick also,maybe just too hot and dry and I do water it more. Now that I have read the reviews, I will move mine also. I found the new Hollywood with red blooms and I need to find a really good place for it.
I am desparately trying to save my Sunspot. It was doing well in the spring, but then started to wilt. After I read a few of the previous posts, I moved it to a sunnier location (even though it got afternoon sun in the old location). Now most of it is dead. I stripped the dead leaves and roots, cleaned it up and put it in water. Now a tiny new leave is emergy (knock on wood!)--so small that one barely can see it.
My question is--in case someone has the answer and this is related to a previous post--could it be that there is some inherent weakness in Sunspot that, some years after its hybridization, it has reached an "end" point, so to speak?
BlueAsh, I just don't know. I moved my Sunspot again! And again it's doing better. I found a place it gets several hours of sun but not all at once. I'm going to order a few Spotlight because I really need the color contrast in my shade bed. They seem to be a little less finicky.
Katy,
This may be totally off--but it may help. Could it be that Sunspot is susceptible to diseases?
I read in one of the posts (in one of the forums) that adding a bit of hydrogen peroxicide with each watering helps plants. The person who posted it thought that it might help bring more oxygen to the plants. My theory--total speculation too--is that hydrogen peroxicide may kill fungus and/or bacteria. You know, dentists often advise us to rinse our mouths with it? So I soaked my sunspot--or what was alive--into a hydrogen peroxicide mixture. I don't remember the exact ratio, but I put a capful into a cup of water. It has not killed the plant yet and it *may* contribute to the emergence of the itty bitty new leaf. But now I am at a loss as to when/how to transition this fragile thing into soil.
I am just wandering whether disease control is the key with what we are encountering.
Blue,
Could be. I just planted either Sunspot or Stoplight and it's not doing very well. It's in a bed right next to a Heuchera 'Cappuccino' which is doing awesome. I'm going to pull it, move it and see what happens. I think I'll look at the crown very closely and see if I have any crown rot. Just had to put some hostas in the hospital with that after some serious bleach water meds.
BlueAsh, I'll try watering with HP solution. I've used it on a few other things, mainly seedlings and seeds. Worth a try!
Another thing that works with disease control is Sulfur powder. I was told by an Iris lady to use it on bearded irises and, out of desparation, have used it to save other plants. Since the powder stays on the (plant/soil) surface, it may work better in some situations.