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Scirpus cernus browning

sairhardyGb3DP3h7sairhardyGb3DP3h7 Posts: 38
in Problem solving
Hi all new here and new to gardening!! I have a lovely Scirpus cernus in a Japanese garden area i made but its now turning brown...i've been watering it loads as I know its a pond type plant (i didn't know this!).
Any advice to keep it healthy?
Thanks
Sarah 
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Posts

  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    I think the best thing to do is to make a hole in the ground, line with some plastic [an old compost bag, or even a shopping bag] make some holes in the bottom, so that it can't sit in stagnant soil, and plant it there. They don't really like being dry, so if you can give it a wetter environment, that should help. 
    If you have a photo, that might help too - in case it's something else causing the browning.  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • sairhardyGb3DP3h7sairhardyGb3DP3h7 Posts: 38

  • sairhardyGb3DP3h7sairhardyGb3DP3h7 Posts: 38
    edited September 2020
    here he is! So do you think he needs to go in the ground? Out of his pot? 
    He is in a pot and on a shallow pot i keep filled with water
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    I don't think it looks too bad in that photo. They're not really ideal as potted plants, and it may not have enough moisture if it's quite big, and it looks like it is, so you may need a bigger pot, and then carry on with the method you're using.
    Using a decent soil for it will also help, not compost. It isn't hefty enough for any long term planting in pots, so if that's the case, it's worth using some soil from the garden if you have it, or buying some topsoil from a GC or other outlet.  :)

    The pot itself might absorb water as well, depending on what it's made of.  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • sairhardyGb3DP3h7sairhardyGb3DP3h7 Posts: 38

  • sairhardyGb3DP3h7sairhardyGb3DP3h7 Posts: 38
    do you think he's outgrown his pot then? 
    So plan A is to put him in the ground !
    Ok thanks for advice!
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Is the pot quite shallow like a bulb pan? Hard to tell. If it is, it would be better if you can get it into a deeper one, so that it has room for the roots to get down.  :)
    Terracotta will absorb a lot of the water too, so pay particular attention to the watering in dry conditions. I think it'll be fine if you can do that, unless you have a pond to put it in.
    That could be  your next project  ;)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • sairhardyGb3DP3h7sairhardyGb3DP3h7 Posts: 38
    Ooh maybe a pond, i do have an area of old grass to do something with.
    Yes its a shallow bulb pan. Can you advise what size roughly pot i would need ?
  • AstraeusAstraeus Posts: 336
    sairhardyGb3DP3h7 said:
    Ooh maybe a pond, i do have an area of old grass to do something with.
    Yes its a shallow bulb pan. Can you advise what size roughly pot i would need ?
    Mine is in a pond, planted at a 15cm depth above the crown and in a 5L pot which is about 15cm deep.
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    Yes - ideally in a pond, but if you can't do that, the pot needs to be double the depth of that pan it's in - at least. It's a big plant, and looks like it would need a 10 to 12 inch pot, but just be guided but the size of the rootball.
    It's too shallow for the roots to thrive just now, as they have nowhere to go   :)

    Those pans are called alpine pans usually - because they're designed for plants that need very little depth of soil  :)

    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
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