Marianne's Response

Hibiscus trees

I bought two hibiscus trees and they were beautiful… until I planted them into a different pot. I put gravel at the bottom of the pot and then added a layer of sandy dirt. I put the tree in and then filled it up. A few weeks later they began to look droopy. I don’t know if I should use a different type of soil or if they need food or more water. I am a completely new gardener. I do not know what to do the leaves are turning yellow and falling and they looked droopy. I added some osmocote plus plant food and tried to loosen the soil. I cut off the yellow leaves and then watered them. Is that all I can do for now or do I need a different soil? What soil should I buy?

Posted by MaKayla Glowacki on May 11, 2020

Marianne's Response

I am sorry to say your trees need to have potting soil not  dirt from the garden and do not put gravel in the bottom of the pot. Make sure the pots have drainage holes. You can save your trees. Just buy some Miracle Grow potting soil (sold at WalMart and box stores) then remove the trees from the pots, empty them out and repot using the new soil. There will be diagrams on how to do this on the potting soil bag. Do not fertilizer until you see signs of new growth. Keep newly potted plants in the shade for a week or so and keep the soil moist but not wet. I think they will survive and you could even get flowers late this summer. Keep growing, Marianne Binetti

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