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Help! Why is my astilbe in crisis?

oliviaecarney7ivznv8xoliviaecarney7ivznv8x Posts: 4
in Problem solving

I planted this astilbe roughly 3-4 weeks ago and I thought she had been doing great… until this last week. 

I’m in zone 6b and this garden bed gets morning shade & afternoon sun starting around 2:30-3:00pm. I know they like moist soil (and I have been watering every morning) so my first assumption was that the leaves were showing signs of under watering. I let water run over the base of the plant for around 10 minutes this morning with the intention giving it a really deep watering…but this evening they look noticeably worse than this morning! Ugh. 

I’m new to gardening so any advice would be so greatly appreciated 🙏🏻



Posts

  • Blue OnionBlue Onion Posts: 2,995
    It looks like wind burn?
    Utah, USA.
  • Busy-LizzieBusy-Lizzie Posts: 24,043
    It looks like sunburn to me. Astilbes don't really like afternoon sun.
    Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    Sunburn I think as well,  they like shade,  acid soil and to be kept quite damp.
    Try watering at night,  that way it will retain the water for much longer,  if you water in the morning,  it’s will be dry by the afternoon and if you have a shady part of the garden,  I would put it there. 
    It’s one of the plants I love for my acid garden,  grows well and doesn’t get slug eaten,  never lost one in a cold winter either,  a  very useful plant.
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • bertrand-mabelbertrand-mabel Posts: 2,697
    We have one in a gravel bed near the pond. It was like crispy seaweed until we watered it and has come back to what it should be. It is protected from the NE winds but yes it does get full sun for half of the day.
  • oliviaecarney7ivznv8xoliviaecarney7ivznv8x Posts: 4
    thank you, everyone! I’m thinking my daily watering has only been infiltrating the top layer of soil and the roots below weren’t getting enough moisture. I have very sandy, rocky soil that I think dries out quickly. I’m going to give it a 20 min. drink for the next couple days in hopes that the deeper soil starts to retain more water. 

    I know they are a shade-loving plant, but they seem to have tolerance for some sun as long as they’re properly watered. So, I hope I can fix that. 
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