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indoorn00b

What is wrong with my geranium?

indoorn00b
15 years ago

as you can see from the pics below my geranium is suffering and I am in desperate need to revitalize him. he had blooms and then they browned up and are about to fall off, most of the leaves have turned yellow and brittle but the bottom of the leaves still has green.

my friend told me i could pot him in this pot and leave him in an east facing window. did so and now this =(

does anyone have any suggestions? for now i have moved him into a south east facing window but not much improvement.

thanks

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Comments (5)

  • birdsnblooms
    15 years ago

    Hi Indoorn. What type of soil is your Geranium in? It looks heavy. When geraniums are grown in the ground, outside, they pretty much adapt to most soils, but when in a pot, they need a well-draining, sandy soil.
    What size is the pot?
    If it were my plant, I'd first remove all the brown leaves..
    An east window is okay, but geraniums are sun-lovers..so instead of an east, keep in your south east, or if you have a south or sunny, direct sun west great. If you can set outside in summer, that'd be best. If not, stick with the sunniest spot.
    How long had you move it from east to se?
    Anyway, remove browned leaves. Pot in a sandy or soil w/additional Perlite. Or both. I use All Purpose, Sand and Perlite.
    Let soil dry between waterings, almost like you would a succulent plant.
    Fertilize once a month with an All Purpose plant food, but perhaps you should wait until you see new growth before adding a fertilizer.
    Its trunk looks green so it's not dead. Have you added any chemicals on it recently? Toni

  • indoorn00b
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    dear hopeful,

    thanks for the response. the soil its in is a regular indoor/outdoor potting mix. im new to this all and dont have any perlite but i do have some sterilized sand. i think this soil is moisture retaining as i have had the same issue with a few of my other house plants. i plan on removing some of the soil and mixing in some of this sand. i have since cut away the brown leaves and placed closer to the south east window.

    i have some tiny new growth on the stem and he seems to be looking up a bit. hopefully adding sand to the mix will give him even more of a boost. i think i should move him outside but my porch is only north facing and shaded. also i have not added any chemicals but i plan to give him a drop or so of plant food after he hopefully establishes himself a bit more.

    thanks again =]

  • MariposaTraicionera
    15 years ago

    Same thing is happening to mine, and they're in pots. I got the premium potting soil and maybe that's not sandy enough?

  • kathy5
    15 years ago

    Same problem here,too. Have lost 7 out of 15 plants, some in pots and in ground. We've had rainy spring/early summer... maybe they just got to much water or just bad year for them. Good luck

  • birdsnblooms
    15 years ago

    Howdy...I steer clear of Moisture Retaining soils..Treat Geraniums 'almost' as you would a succulent..they need more water and fertilizer in summer, but during winter months, allow soil to dry..
    Even during summer months I allow soil to dry between waterings. Not to the point soil cracks, but dry to the touch, powdery.

    Indoorn, I've never heard of indoor/outdoor soil..what is it? LOL. Outdoor soils are fairly heavy so roots may have problems. If soil is too heavy, and stays wet, its roots won't absorb water/fertilizers.
    Sand, Perlite and an All Purpose or Succulent Soil works great..My geraniums live in clay, though plastic isn't bad as long as soil doesn't stay muddy. Drainage holes in pots are very important.

    Geraniums adapt to direct south or west sun..North should do, but if possible, after your plant adapts to outdoor light, move to a brighter location. Full sun means compact growth and tons of flowers. Toni

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