I planted these end of April i believe, and they were doing fine... even flowered.
but now, 2 of the 3 look as if they are dying.
any ideas??
I got these from hallson's --- i may drop them an email to see "what's up".
so sad.....
My Phlox divaricata do not look well
tcs,
I can't see the 1st photo well enough to tell if it is insect damage or the plant is collapsing. It looks like you have wood chip mulch very close to the stems. I'd move the mulch away a little. These plants need space around them so they can spread and I've found they don't like to be mulched. When I do mulch I use pine needles. They also seem to like spreading their roots between the rocks that edge the border. One of the biggest problems I've had with wood phlox has been slug damage. After I used Sluggo the phlox thrived. The Montrose tricolor you have has been the most resistant to all problems in my garden. I did lose other wood phlox for 2 years in a row until I figured out it was slug damage.
This message was edited Jun 4, 2007 7:48 AM
do you think they will "come back" if i get the wood chips away?
I know i have many slugs in my front beds -- havent seen them yet this year, but i'm sure they are there.
I'll also get Sluggo.
Will egg shell keep slugs away? I have a bunch crushed that i havent put in my compost yet.
terese
terese,
Try the egg shells. If it is slug damage the plants should come back. Make sure no other plants smother it. I have a tendency to over plant, but this one needs room. I'm sorry you had trouble so soon after planting. So disappointing.
Do slugs chomp on phlox divericata as well? Mine never does well, and you are causing me to wonder whether slugs are the reason.
i've sprinkled the egg shells and pulled all the wood chips away.
do you think it may come back to life a bit?
i found my receipt, and the stuff wasn't cheap.
Mine was doing poorly because of lack of water; I cut it back and watered thoroughly, and it came right back.
happy -- when i get home, i'll trim them back.... all that was left was lil sticks.... but i'll do what i can. and i still have to get SluggO. wasnt able to get it last week... but i'll get to it as soon as i can.
hopefully these will spring right back with a lil TLC.
I hope they do too! Let us know so we can all learn from your experience!
I did email Chris and he thinks they are "too wet"
here's what he had to say
Quoting:
It sounds like they might be getting too wet. The woodland phlox prefers to be really dry and will grow in areas of root competition and dry soil conditions where other plants might struggle. If the soil is heavy you might try moving it to a new location - possibly a spot that gets some good morning or late evening sun. We grow our crop under a large walnut tree in sandy soil. They get sun early and again late. We never water that spot and they spread really well.
so, i moved the 2 into 2 different spots.... both with morning sun (eastern exposure) where the ground stays more dry.
Hopefully the leaves will come back and they will survive.
Maybe, but I am convinced mine started looking poorly from too little water. I agree soggy probably isn't good -- mine are in a dry stop just out of reach of the sprinker and under an underhang so they don't get much direct rain unless it storms or is windy.
happy -- that are the locations i replanted mine,,, just out of reach of the sprinklers.
though i can't think of any place where they will be "in areas of root competition".
I'll watch them closely..... but i'd certainly hate to lose them... they weren't cheap.
But mine need supplemental water . . ..