Q: I have numerous pots of flowers on my patio, and many of them are getting yellowed foliage and aren’t looking their best. I fertilized them with a good granular fertilizer when I planted them up, and they get decent sunshine. Any ideas on improving them?
A: Flowers in containers need a steady source of additional fertilizer! You’re watering your pots more often than your plants in the ground – you just have to – and each time you water, you lose a bit of soil fertility out the drainage holes as it rinses out.
Flowering plants in containers can be fed a granular fertilizer regularly, but water-soluble fertilizers start working the moment you apply them and are the fastest way to correct your poor color. Use Covington’s Flower and Garden for most plantings, or Carl Pool BR-61 for some of your heaviest flowering plants like hibiscus, plumeria, bougainvillea, and plumbago. Apply these fertilizers every 7 to 10 days throughout the summer.
Improvement will be rapid if you do so.
Burton specializes in diagnosing and solving plant problems. If you have a question for Burton, please email him at burton@covingtonnursery.com and include photos showing the problem.