Hibiscus is dying

16 years ago

Two years ago I inherited a tropical hibiscus with a braided trunk and lovely peach colored blooms. The first year I had no problems at all, it bloomed time and time again and was wonderfully healthy. I brought it indoors for the winter and it continued to bloom quite nicely. I put it back on our front porch last summer and proceeded to care for it like I had the previous summer. I watered it a lot, and the leaves began to turn yellow. Last summer was a wet one so I thought I was over-watering it and so I cut back. It gradually began to lose the leaves on one side of it but it continued to bloom occasionally though out the summer and winter, though the blooms were weak and didn't last long. I considered repotting it but read that I should do it in the spring so I waited. Over the winter, it lost most of it leaves, though it would bloom occasionally. I'm not sure what I did wrong. I watered it when the soil was dry and no more. My cats however, did decide to use it as their new litter box a time or two so I put newspapers over the dirt to keep them out of it. Currently, all the leaves are gone except for a couple branches on one side which are now growing new leaves. A lot of the branches on the one side are dead and I trimmed most of them off today and repotted it in a new pot of the same size. I read that I should touch the roots as little as possible so I did not trim them.

My question is this: is it too late to save my hibiscus tree? Is there anything I should do to help it heal itself or should I just wait and see how it goes over the summer? Currently it is inside in the dining room. We are suppose to get another cold snap soon so I'm waiting another month before putting it back on the porch.

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Comments (4)

agrigirl
16 years ago
First, Cat urine is very acidic. You may want to add a liming agent that will bring the acid levels down and balance out the pH. The Hibiscus is losing its leaves because of the urine. Second, you should consider removing the plant, cleaning out the container thoroughly and replanting it with fresh soil. Third, you may have a root bound plant on top of all of this, so try to put it in a larger pot if you can. Adding some Vitamin B1 to your watering will help the plant heal.

Also, to keep your cat from urinating on the plant anymore (for some reason cats love Hibiscus, my cat did it to mine a few years ago) I placed a small wire cage around the outer edge if the pot. My cage wasn't more than 3-4 inches in height, but it deterred the cat from wanting to overcome this obstacle.

Hope this helps!
jenj81
Original Author
16 years ago
They haven't touched it since I covered it with the newspaper. I did replant it using fresh soil and a brand new container; however, I used the same size container because I don't want it grow any larger (assuming it can come back at all). Should I add the vitamin B1 for good measure?
And if it is root bound, would it distress the plant too much to replant it again so soon?
After I replanted it, I also mixed in 2 spoonfuls of osmocote plant food 19-6-12. Will this help at all?
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agrigirl
16 years ago
The 19-6-12 osmocote should be ok. But, watch too much nitrogen being added. Some hibiscus like it only in moderation. How long ago did you replant it? It should not distress it too much to replant. If it is root bound then it will be more stressed because when you water it the water and the fertilizer will just run over the roots instead of staying in the soil and allowing the roots to take it up and it will avoid keeping moisture on the plant that is needed.

You can add the B1 or even a vitamin C tablet crushed up in some water would be ok too.

I hope it is not too far gone. Best of luck and please let us know if it makes a recovery!
jroot
16 years ago
Sometimes, one has to root prune the plant, if one wants to keep it in the same pot. Good advice given though to scrub the pot well, and give it new soil. I have to do this with mine this year also.

I find that my hibiscus love to be watered daily when they are in the hot sun. However, they don't like wet feet, so they have to drain well.

I have quite a few different hibiscus, some almost 30 years old, and this year I am planting several new tropical hibiscus - hopefully to come up with some new and exciting colour combinations.

Good luck.