Container Maintenance, Diagnosing Plant Problems and Product Picks

Here is how some of C.L.’s containers looked in June. In order to make them grow full and flower-filled all summer, they need regular water, deadheading and fertilizing.

Here are those same containers in August.

How do you diagnose a problem when you see a plant isn’t doing well? In this case, you look closely. You’ll see that the yellow leaves are the oldest ones on this plant. This shot was taken in early spring when the new foliage was just starting to show. The plant is shedding the oldest leaves (and many of these show leaf-spot damage that happened in previous years) in favor of the new foliage that is coming out. Leaf spot often shows up the most once a leaf is being dropped by the plant. In order to avoid leaf spot fungus damage as much as possible, never water in the evening and water deeply less often, in the morning, if you are going to get the foliage wet.