please help!!! i think i messed up!!!

i just rearranged my garden and everything looks very wilted. is it gonna die or will it bounce back? what should i do????

It has transplant shock - most likely. It will bounce back.. just give it a little time - also I would recommend puting some transplant shock fert on it - like superthrive or M. grow has a transplant formula.
good luck!
bre

thank you. walmart here i come!!!

Also give them plenty of water.

Yeah--I would water them about twice a day.

How often to water depends a lot on what sort of soil you have, if you have clay soil and water twice a day you'll drown your plants, but if your soil is sandy then it may be the appropriate amount. I'd do the finger test on a regular basis to determine how frequently to water (stick your finger down a couple inches into the soil, if it feels wet then don't water, but if it's feeling dry then give the plants a good drink)

well, i did it now! i went to walmart o get the root stimulator for the transplant shock and i just couldn't resist this beautiful hibiscus. i needed something taller in here. and i LOVE these plants. i think it is too big though.

maybe i should add some canna lillies or "flags?" (that what we called them when i was growing up) on the sides of the hibiscus to offset the height?

i added a pic of the flags. one is finally blooming YAH!! excuse the trash, tomorrow is trash day, and the hubby didn't make it out in time last week.

I can't tell from the picture, but do you know whether it's a hardy hibiscus or a tropical one? The tropical ones won't make it through your winter so you'd be better off keeping it in a pot so you can bring it in. (I wouldn't trust Walmart to not have tropical ones sitting in their outdoor garden center even though they won't overwinter in your zone)

Wow. that looks great! good job ^_^
bre

i dont know what it is. it says hibiscus rosa-sinesis?

Yep, that's the tropical one. So you'll have to either treat it as an annual or dig it up and bring it in for the winter.

well, i already dig up all my elephant ears and calla lillies, may as well add another to the list! danged it! :)

Nice! One thing that I've found that seems to help "shocky" plants is to protect them from bright sun for a couple of days by throwing a light sheet, old sheer curtain, etc over them... I use poly "row cover" that I bought from a garden catalog, but you can make do with other stuff. If it seems heavy enough that it might weigh down the plants, just put up a few stakes, lawn chairs, or whatnot and drape the sheet over that framework like a tent. You're not going for full shade, just something to filter the strong sun a little bit.

that sounds like a good idea. my neighbors already think im crazy and that im obsessed with my garden. i can't imagine what they will say if i put a 'tent' over my garden. lol. my next door neighbor is always giving me a hard time. although her yard used to look pitiful. it was the 'talk' of the neighborhood. i actually think im rubbing off on her and boy are my other neighbors thankful!!! most of my them are older and their gardens are beautiful. im sure they were once like me and new at this and tried 500 different things before they got where they are. all i can say is that it is a wonderful, beautiful, and very rewarding obsession!

sorry, i dont know where all that came from!

I *like* your enthusiasm! I'm sure my neighbors had plenty of comments last year when we had that late freeze -- for a week! Not only did I wrap my little J. Maple and put upturned pots over as many lilies etc. as I could manage, I also put a series of bedsheets over the large lavender hedge that runs along the driveway. For once, I had pruned the lavender "on schedule," and I was terrified that I was going to lose it to cold damage (newly pruned tips don't like frost). These weren't just white sheets, either, nooo... we're talking plaid flannel!

The protective covering is just needed for a day or two, especially if the forecast is "full sun" and hot (no cloud cover)... it's sort of the same idea as "hardening off" your seedlings, except you're trying to make things a little easier for plants that are already in the ground.

At the townhouse we lived in when we first got married, I undertook a major garden project, replacing weedy grass and overgrown foundation plantings (junipers) with a terraced bed of shrubs, herbs, and flowering perennials. We started a trend! By the following summer, I think half the units on our circle had done some major sprucing-up, and when I went out in the cooler evenings to work in the garden I often had neighbors to chat with who were doing the same. :-)

awww. that made me laugh out loud in the beginning and tear up a bit at the end.

its really cool to know that im not alone in this gardening world. before this website, i really didnt have anyone to talk to about this stuff. i used to call my grandma every other day. i think she was getting a little tired of it. she is a really good gardener, but bless her heart, she has NO IDEA what anything is called! it cracks me up and drives me nuts at the same time. she gives me little things here and there, and im like, i NEED to know what its called, so i can google it and see how to take care of it! lol

oh my gosh. i was just reading your article about 'seed snatching' i was laughing so hard i was almost crying!! i even read part of it to my husband. i am always eyeing the flowers at target and taco bell! now, i may just have some of it for myself! i think i will be the one in the middle of the night armed with the keychain light. oh man, you should write books, if you ever do, i will definately buy them!!!

:-) You should definitely look up some of the old "snatchin' " threads... there are some great stories (and some good tips!) there!

I appreciate the compliment, especially on this article... I remember being nervous when I submitted it, because it was my first one that wasn't so much of a how-to article. Thanks!

its perked up rather well. we just had a few days of scattered storms that really seemed to help!

Jess, that's looking GORGEOUS! Great job!

:-)

aww thank you!