I purchased this plant from Costco and repotted it. When I repotted it, I trimmed the roots and planted it in Miracle Gro soil. That was 2 weeks ago. Since then, it’s been drooping. Now the leaves are all drying and falling off. I water it every other day and it gets indirect sunlight in my patio. When I scratch the branches, it’s still green underneath. Can it be saved?
by HorseAlternative8549
5 Comments
Thank you for posting to r/plantclinic!
While r/plantclinic permits posts related to outdoor plants, they are not the focus of this sub and you may not receive the advice you need. Please consider visiting r/gardening or r/ukgardening for general outdoor gardening advice, and head to r/marijuanaenthusiasts (a subreddit for trees, we promise) for advice related to trees and saplings
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/plantclinic) if you have any questions or concerns.*
It looks like you need to water it more often—but I’d need to know your watering habits. My potted plants outside need a ton of water when it’s over 80F.
Something to note: I find that when I buy a plant, especially from a big box store, it’s acclimated to a low-light environment. If I move it outside too quickly it gets a bit of a shock because it’s not used to getting sunlight (or any light, depending on the retailer).
I also usually don’t repot anything until it’s been in the spot where I plan to keep it, or I move it after it’s been repotted for a while. Too much change can cause a lot of stress.
Otherwise: if you can solve your problem, the green underneath is a good sign that it will be able to bounce back. Keep the faith, troubleshoot, and you might save it.
How much of the roots did you trim and why did you trim them?
The top (leaves, flowers) need to be balanced with the bottom (roots). The leaves need the roots to live. No roots, or too few roots, there’s not enough to feed the leaves.
Hibiscus love sunlight. Since it was in the store, it’s a good thing you just did part sun, because like us, plants can get sunburned. Keep it in that place until it’s better and slowly give it more and more sunlight.
The great thing with hibiscus is that they will sprout new leaves/growth from the branches. As long as they’re still green, it’ll grow back as full as before.
When ur buying from store, don’t mess with roots much till it’s acclimatised to new conditions … u can repot but keep root ball undisturbed …
Its gone be very difficult to recover this plant:
1. Trim off all those leaves and stem back …
2. give it time to establish new microbial activity in roots and let new growth start
3. Don’t water much during this time as no leaves to evaporate the water
Since it’s so dead I’d move it into a sunny position. Hibiscus needs full sun anyways and you don’t need to worry about the leaves getting a sun burn right now. I water my hibiscus everyday until water comes from the bottom- I live in Colorado and the temps are high 80’s+. I have three hibiscus, one is variegated and they all do well in the conditions I described.
With light and water it might come back, worth a try at least!