I do the same with dahlias as I do with my sweet peas - some garden soil, or blocks of turf, in the base, then a mix of rotted, or bagged manure, then compost. It gives the containers more long lasting oomph, and helps a lot with moisture retention, which compost alone can't do for that type of plant. The bigger the pot, the easier it is too
I use slow release food when they get planted up in their final pots- usually around mid May for both, and then the tomato food going through August, when they all need a bit of extra help.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
From the pic it looks as if when watering you have wet the leaves which have then got scorched by the sun. We only give leaves a quick shower to refresh them at night.
My dahlias in pots arent doing very well this year either, as to the sunburn(Fairy) we have some in our front garden south facing, not often watered, have been in several years, not lifted in winter, they have been fine. A lot of the potted ones havent flowered at all. I have a friend who grows all hers in pots, and she has found the same thing this year. You all know me, everything gets tomato feed!
Well my update is that on Weds evening I got a big blue builders bin full of cold bath water (😬) and each pot had a proper 10 minute dunk right up to the pot rim with a little top up on the soil to get them to draw the water up. Some had bubbles coming up so I think they were desperate, despite my watering each evening, as Fairygirl said!
I then cut off all the weak stems and old dried leaves (thanks Fire). And I’ve moved them each day so they are not being roasted in this sun. I think they look better already (except obviously one of the yellow Pom Pom ones and one of dark leaf ones, but they had got really bad).
I did give them a little tomato feed last night, which might have been a risk as I was warned above not to stress them at this stage. I just thought maybe they really are nutrient lacking. The soil was still moist from the dunking day before.
Not sure if I’ll get flowers but I hope the plants and tubers may survive for another year. I am trying to be sustainable and not but new all the time!
Maybe it was just ineffective watering…and nutrients. Poor plants!
Next year 🤞 I will either use manure in the soil in the pots and be sure to keep up the tomato feed (no seaweed!) which I fell behind on during the big heatwave. Or we may put them back in the ground.
Photos below… Thanks everyone so far, what a lovely community this is 🙂
My understanding is that it's a bit of a myth re the wet leaves and scorching @Nanny Beach . The problem with wetting foliage by overhead watering, is that it's largely a waste of water, as it shed off the plants rather than getting into the roots where it's needed, and it's a scarce resource in many places just now, so best avoided. Watering in full sun is also a bit wasteful because it evaporates more quickly, which is why at night or early morning is better If plants are well enough hydrated, the leaves will stay green/plum longer because they've got that moisture in them, but sometimes it's just one of those things, and some plants will do better than others - as in many situations, regardless of what we do. A bit of pre-emptive 'moving around' is often the best solution in hot, parched areas. Putting pots in a shadier spot when a long dry spell is forecast, which means they'll dry out more slowly and won't need quite so much water. Harder when they're in the ground, for obvious reasons. Anything you can do to prevent a problem, is always easier than trying to tackle it once it's got hold. I hope you can revive them @Ann85, at least to get them through the rest of the season, and have them healthy for next year.
The extent of the drought, and the excessive heat in the south just makes it more challenging with all sorts of plants. We don't have that problem here, which makes it easier, but we'll still need to look at how we plan for future planting, because we're used to the opposite situation of putting lots of plants and shrubs into a space, without the worry of them drying out. That is changing.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I've recently seen leaf scorch on Ricinus species due to sun burn, I think! They have large glossy leaves which are slightly sculpted, allowing rain drops or water to rest on the leaves as droplets, magnifying the light through the water to burn the leaves. Both red and green leaved varieties showed these symptoms. I got fed up with them anyway as they were taking over the border so have now gone!
I have seen what I take to be leaf scorch. Don't think it's an "every time it rains" scenario. Think it's probably to do with the temperature jump - a cool evening, water on the leaves and then sudden, scorching, direct sun. Something like that.
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I use slow release food when they get planted up in their final pots- usually around mid May for both, and then the tomato food going through August, when they all need a bit of extra help.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Thanks everyone so far, what a lovely community this is 🙂
When you don't even know who's in the team
S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
Watering in full sun is also a bit wasteful because it evaporates more quickly, which is why at night or early morning is better
If plants are well enough hydrated, the leaves will stay green/plum longer because they've got that moisture in them, but sometimes it's just one of those things, and some plants will do better than others - as in many situations, regardless of what we do.
A bit of pre-emptive 'moving around' is often the best solution in hot, parched areas. Putting pots in a shadier spot when a long dry spell is forecast, which means they'll dry out more slowly and won't need quite so much water. Harder when they're in the ground, for obvious reasons. Anything you can do to prevent a problem, is always easier than trying to tackle it once it's got hold. I hope you can revive them @Ann85, at least to get them through the rest of the season, and have them healthy for next year.
The extent of the drought, and the excessive heat in the south just makes it more challenging with all sorts of plants. We don't have that problem here, which makes it easier, but we'll still need to look at how we plan for future planting, because we're used to the opposite situation of putting lots of plants and shrubs into a space, without the worry of them drying out. That is changing.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
When you don't even know who's in the team
S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...