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Honeysuckle - leaves turning a sad purple colour & looking unhealthy
Northdowns
Posts: 3
Hi all,
we planted an variety of honeysuckle that we hadn't seen before 2 seasons ago - Dropmore Scarlet - (now in its third) in a substantial square pot, with the intention of it covering some decking/gate infrastructure. It did so quite easily in its first year, producing some amazing bright orange/reddy flowers along the way. Spectacular !
Second season it bushed out, producing the same flowers, but leaves faded into this reddy/purple colour and that was that.
This season it has completed its bloom already, with the leaves going the same way, but seems even unhealthier than it did last year.
It gets plenty of water in its pot (too much maybe..?), doesn't struggle for sunlight and has never suffered with the usual mildew that I've seem on other varieties.
I'll post some pics later, but has anyone got any idea of what could be going on...?
What it's supposed to look like:
How it started out:
How it is now:
Cheers in advance.
Northdowns
we planted an variety of honeysuckle that we hadn't seen before 2 seasons ago - Dropmore Scarlet - (now in its third) in a substantial square pot, with the intention of it covering some decking/gate infrastructure. It did so quite easily in its first year, producing some amazing bright orange/reddy flowers along the way. Spectacular !
Second season it bushed out, producing the same flowers, but leaves faded into this reddy/purple colour and that was that.
This season it has completed its bloom already, with the leaves going the same way, but seems even unhealthier than it did last year.
It gets plenty of water in its pot (too much maybe..?), doesn't struggle for sunlight and has never suffered with the usual mildew that I've seem on other varieties.
I'll post some pics later, but has anyone got any idea of what could be going on...?
What it's supposed to look like:
How it started out:
How it is now:
Cheers in advance.
Northdowns
0
Posts
I think we're going to try it with a regime of tomato feed to see if it perks up.
Bit confused why it should be changing colour though. Anyone got any ideas about that..??
Ta.
You say it's been 3rys in this pot? What compost did you use to fill it? Ordinary MPC has approx 90 days of nutrients in it and is very free draining. Even using JI no.3 it would need a slow release feed applied every year to keep it ticking over.
Is it a terracotta pot and did you seal it inside prior to planting? If not it will be sucking up a lot of the water away from the roots.
You will always struggle to keep a hungry, thirsty plant like honeysuckle healthy in a pot this size IMO, would be much better to plant it in the ground.
If you can't do that, replacing the compost with a fresh soil based compost (john innes no.3) and following a consistent feeding/watering regime would be the way to go.
Good luck.
If it goes, then we'll have a more considered think about what to replace it with.
Ta.
ND
Tomato feed will just put it under more stress as it will encourage it to produce flowers when the plant is already struggling.
The plant needs the conditions that will suit it in order to grow well. You wouldn't try to grow a plant which needs hot arid conditions in a damp woodland ... the opposite applies.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.