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i bought a blueberry, a plum, and a redcurrant bush, earlier this year, all from a budget shop. they all got planted in large pots, with erecaceaus soil for the blueberry, and in spots that got fairly good sunshine. they havent been allowed to dry out; i watered every other day, and were all doing quite well i thought, showing new growth. but they have all suddenly died. is there a desease which would effect all 3 of them? ( they werent even kept close together- or at least, the redcurrant and the blueberry were reasonably close to each other, the plum was miles away. any ideas as to where i have gone wrong?
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Not by you, but they wouldn't have been watered in the shop, and how long were they sitting on the shelves? I'd only buy from a pound shop if I could see definite signs of life, and even then I've lost things that looked promising...Originally posted by lindyloo View PostAll gardeners know better than other gardeners." -- Chinese Proverb. -
When did you buy them? They should have been planted by March at the latest.Comment
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They probably didn't die of disease - I'm not aware of a disease that will attack all of them.
I find that pots in full sun dry very quickly and need watering heavily at least three times a week.
My strawberry barrels require about five litres per barrel, about twice per week.
To get adequate water penetration of the soil, I find that I have to water each barrel with about one litre, then leave for a few minutes, then another litre....and so on.
Otherwise the dry soil just lets all the water run straight out of the bottom of the pot, rather than the soil gradually absorbing the water, which then expands as it gradually soaks up water, which then prevents subsequent watering from running straight through.Last edited by FB.; 21-07-2010, 10:29 PM..Comment
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thanks to all of you for your replies. all showed signs of life when i bought them ( little green shoots with tiny leaves). none were in full sun - my garden is quite overlooked so they wouldnt get more than about 6 hours of sun. it is very windy though. i did check the soil dryness in the drought conditions, and it was still wet under the surface each time i watered ( prior to watering) which was every other day. they weer in fairly large tubs, and the plum was in the ground. i dont think they got planted until late april/ early may when i bought them, so maybe that is the problem- they had too late a start. the plum has now thrown some green shoots out from the bottom, which i noticed yesterday evening- not sure whether this is a good thing or should i remove them- would it then come to life at the top? something i have noticed- it is weird that if it is something i dont particularily like, it seems to thrive for me, but the plants i really want never seem to do well for me, so i think theymust not like me!Comment
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Lindy, try again but plant at the right time, you'll have more success. I put a young apple tree into the ground in Sept instead of waiting until the plant was dormant.
It was healthy & fruiting every year, and looked fine on transplant, it got lots of water. However, it died after our very hot September and very cold winter. I now have a 5 foot tall bunch of dead branches
All gardeners know better than other gardeners." -- Chinese Proverb.Comment
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thanks two sheds. ( you could grow some climbing honeysuckle over that apple tree!!)Comment
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Sounds like it might be that the rootstock of the plum is growing.Originally posted by lindyloo View Post
The rootstock won't produce the same fruit as the top of the tree.
In fact, with plums/almonds/peaches etc it may not even produce the same type of fruit as the top of the tree.
Check to see whether there is a problem with the graft, which could explain the rootstock growth. However, plums are notorius for sending up shoots from the rootstock, so it may be completely normal.
As for whether to cut them off.......the tree probably needs all the strength it can get, so I'd leave them for now and look to remove them at a later time, once the tree is recovering..Comment
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