Mums in containers - not doing well

Discussion in 'Small Space Gardening' started by devongirl, Jun 16, 2005.

  1. devongirl

    devongirl Member

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    Devon, Alberta
    I received a couple mums as gifts after my own mom passed away about 7 weeks ago. Due to the hectic weeks that followed, I regret to say I didn't get around to replanting them for several weeks. They sat in they pots they came in for several weeks, though I did water them. Eventually they started to look bad and I rushed out and bought 2 containers to plant them in (small yard, not much garden space left so they had to go into pots).
    Needless to say, they didn't get any better. At my SIL's suggestion, I cut off all the dying flowers in hopes that they would use the energy to grow new buds.
    Its been about 2 weeks and nothing new is coming in. The leaves are still green but I wonder if I killed it!
    First question is, can mums survive and flourish in pots?
    Next, do you think this will come back?
    A note about the pots, they are a good size for these plants and I put some rocks in the bottom for drainage. Yet when it rains, the soil stays very wet for several days aftewards.
    I have a bad feeling about this!
     
  2. Newt

    Newt Well-Known Member 10 Years

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    Hi Devon Girl,

    It's been quite a while since you posted and I was wondering if your mums recovered. Cutting off the flowers to let them establish their roots was the right thing to do. It would take them about 3 or 4 weeks before you see any new buds as they're working on growing those roots. Do let them dry on the top inch of soil before you water.

    Sorry to hear of your loss,
    Newt
     
  3. devongirl

    devongirl Member

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    Thank you Newt for your reply.
    Well, I lost one of the mums. The soil would stay constantly wet. After a rainstorm, there would be a cm or so of water sitting on top of the soil for several days! Eventually the leaves turned brown so I pulled that mum out of the pot. And I have to say I was surprised when I did this, the soil left in the pot STUNK! Bad, like sewage nearly! What is that all about?
    The other mum is coming back nicely. It has only had 2 flowers, but the new growth is shooting up and I can see buds growing. And we have plenty of summer time left for it to get growing more. I'm sure this one is okay.
    Thanks again for the reply.
    And PS, I love your tagline, that is so true, so funny, yet so disturbing at the same time!
     
  4. Newt

    Newt Well-Known Member 10 Years

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    You are so very welcome! Sorry to hear that you lost one of the mums. You said, "After a rainstorm, there would be a cm or so of water sitting on top of the soil for several days! ...the soil left in the pot STUNK! Bad, like sewage nearly! What is that all about?"

    It sounds to me like you don't have drainage holes in your pot or it's sitting in a saucer. The water didn't drain out and became rancid. That is what made it stink. If you keep pots outdoors, you shouldn't use a saucer under it. If you have the pot on a deck or table you can raise it up with something like pot feet so the pot won't leave a stain and the water can drain away. Some of them are really whimsical.
    http://www.glenfarmsgourmet.com/Images/HT_Pot_Feet.jpg
    http://www.gardenchic.co.uk/img/prod_img/New Terracotta/Bigfeet-300.jpg
    http://altura.speedera.net/ccimg.catalogcity.com/200000/208200/208295/Products/4987468.jpg
    http://www.dpent.ca/Images/23447.jpg

    Glad you like my 'tag line'. It really happened to me. I was weeding in the garden last year and found this large clump of 'weeds' growing in the shade around the bench. I started pulling them up and they just popped out of the ground. After pulling for a few minutes and accumulating a large pile, I came across a plant tag. It said 'giant blue lobelia'. I thought, "Uh oh!", since this was a plant I had gotten in trade from a friend two years previous. I had been on vacation when they had bloomed the following year and I didn't recognize them. So into the house with a sample and to the computer to see what they really looked like. Since my son lives in South America I always check my e-mails before I go anywhere on the computer. He had sent me some sayings and this was one of them. After reading it I went to google with great anticipation. Lo and behold I had been pulling up the lobelia that had self seeded. Gosh, I was so disappointed since my hummers just love the stuff. So, I decided to adopt it as my 'signature'. Btw, they have seeded once again and I now have a lovely bunch.

    Newt
     

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