Hi all,
I hope someone can help me solve this mystery. This is the 2nd year I've bought a healthy, vigorous flat of pentas only to see them slowly fade away and die! There were 6 plants in the flats and I put them in an established bed that receives plenty of care in full sun. The plants seem to thrive for a while and even continue to flower. However, they don't attain any height at all--they remain the same size as I planted them. Then, the entire plant slowly starts to yellow and shrivel away. Not all of the plants were affected this year. I have lost two this way so far and I have a sinking feeling the rest will follow. Last year I lost all 6. The other 4 still appear healthy and are flowering, however, they are not growing any taller. They have been in the ground for 3 months! My mom grows these with ease - no problems what so ever. I have penta envy! Her's are beautiful and come back every year. I am a fairly experienced gardener, but this has me stumped! Anyone have any ideas why this could be happening?
Pentas Fading Away?
This is what I have found out about pentas. Different varieties seem to do better than others. I try to buy pentas that are sold in 1 gal nursery pots or just a bit smaller. Also, here in FL, some are marketed as annuals others as perennials. I, too, have had difficulty wirh pentas when I bought small plants that were part of a flat. I look for taller plants or ask the nursery owner if they have any of the larger, older varieties of pentas, especially red. The pink 'starburst' is also supposed to be good. That one has a darker pink center. For me, the ones with white centers have not done as well as others. I'm not sure if pentas are perennials where you live, but when mine start to look not so good, I cut them way back almost to sticks, and they usually come back. I am no expert-- these are just the experiences I have had. Perhaps someone else will disagree with me or have better advice for you.
I'm sorry, I should have known you were talking about perennial pentas, since this is the perennial forum. When I started looking at my plants, I realized that my photos contradict what I said about white centers in the above post. One of the plants I have had since last year does have white centers! The first photo shows athe pink one that I cut way back a few weeks ago. The large red, I have only stagger-cut this year, and the teeny red is one I am trying to save, by cutting most of it off. I hope it will come back. The white is a photo from last year. I no longer have those. I actually have another light pink and a bright pink variety that have both come back well from a hard cutback.
OMG! I just posted a question in the annuals forum because I assumed Pentas were six foot tall shrubs in Florida and the upper zones.
http://davesgarden.com/forums/p.php?pid=3605117
The local vegetable stand is selling pentas for $1.00 in a 2 1/2 inch pot that is 4"deep. I want these, but I don't understand how big they will grow until frost kills them in early October, so I don't know how far apart to plant them. Would they do well in a hanging basket?
They look just like the kinds in the photo above, but are solid red. The one by the tree looks like it is a foot tall and a foot wide, would you say that is accurate?
Thanks for any help,
Suzy
Snuzer,
Your pentas look great! Do you have them in full sun? I really think mine have some sort of disease.
Suzy,
I have never seen pentas in a hanging basket. Maybe there is a variety that trails, but I have only seen the upright ones. My mother's pentas grow to be about 21/2 ft. tall. They also reseed and come back every year.
Mine were godzilla pentas last year, growing 5' tall (if you measure from ground to the tip of the tallest stalk.)
I had the same trouble you are having, Ladibug. I feel that the small ones, once planted in the ground, take awhile to grow above ground because they're trying to grow roots into the native soil. They'll take a lot of water until the roots are established. These little ones take much TLC with a watchful eye and watering can in hand.
Thanks, Ladibug! I definitely agree with Cordeledawg. Give a few of the small pentas a try and give a lot of tlc. My red ones have grown to about 4ft tall. Once they got that big, they started lookig leggy and needed to be cut back. I was disappointed that the white ones only lasted one season. They got to about 1ft tall. My pink ones I have had for about a year. The have not gotten bigger than 2' before needing to be cut back. It is hard to know how big they will get for sure. I wouldn't put them any closer than 6" or any farther than 12. I'm sorry that this is a large range-- Do what I do - Go with your gut- For me, gardening is usually trial and error, but it always helps to get info from others here at DG.
I think the red ones are usually the strongest and the biggest, (in my experience), so you may want to place them 10 in. apart. Full sun will probably be fine--I believe a few of my pink ones get full sun and the red ones are in partial sun.
'm confused. And I'm dense. Are you saying they are tall and thin? Planting 6-12" apart and they get 48 inches tall by October? If I sound astounded it's because I thought these were very stocky plants with lots of basal branching. Maybe I'd better take another look at them/ LOL!
Thanks,
Suzy
Well, maybe my advice is not so good. My plants don't usually get more than 1-2 ft wide. Plantfiles says 24- 36" apart. Maybe you should plant them farther apart than I originally said. Sorry.
Thereis a lot of information on the plant files pageabout pentas, but I imagine you have already read it. The photo by dale_a_gardener shows the typical size of many of mine.
A gardening book I have says to plant them 18"on center for a tight look, 24 in. for a natural look. (So I am sorry I gave you bad advice before--I don't know what I was thinking!)
LOL! It;s ok. There is a big difference between Florida andIindiana I was assuming they were big shrubs, like lantana and geraniums in Florida, but up north we grow them as annuals and they have a very different habit.
Sorry for the hijack, Ladibug
Suzy