Dead pansy

[dormouse]

To start off, I don't know that much about the details of gardening or plant-keeping.

I live in a pretty drab apartment, so a few weeks ago I bought a small flower pot and a pansy to put on my window sill in my kitchen. For the first week or so it was going great. I was really sad when it's first blossom got damaged, but was excited to see two more bloom. I watered it every few days and it's in a pretty sunny spot (I'm not sure how direct the sunlight is).

Well, I'm pretty sure it's nearly dead. The leaves started turning yellow and now all of the stalks have drooped over. I don't know why!

I want to replace it, but I don't want to kill something else. Are there any flowers that are particularly well suited for small pots on windowsills? Any theories about what I did wrong?

[hoodedclawjen]

i think you overwatered it. thats an incredibly common thing for people to do. if the roots stay wet all the time, they rot. wikipedia says they should be watered (prety much saturated) once a week.

http://houseplants.suite101.com/article.cfm/overwatering

[dormouse]

Ack! And here I was worried that I wasn't watering it enough.

So is it ok for the soil to be really really dry sometimes?

[hoodedclawjen]

just cos its really dry on the surface, doesn't mean its really dry underneath. if the roots are always wet, they get soggy. maybe you should buy a little moisture meter that you stick into the soil that tells you when to water. they're pretty cheap and really useful.

[hoodedclawjen]

does your pot have drainage holes in the bottom? thats important too.

[dormouse]

does your pot have drainage holes in the bottom? thats important too.

Yeah. Thanks for your help. I'll try again with a new plant this weekend.

[Tom]

The only way you could be certain if it was overwatered or underwatered would be to check the soil an inch or two beneath the surface.

As hoodedclawjen mentions, drainage holes are important. To water a potted plant, I usually water until it starts seeping out the bottom- that way I know it's watered all the way through.

Eventually you'll probably learn to tell whether a plant needs water by picking up the pot and feeling how heavy it is. Try picking it up when it's dry and then again right after you water it.

[Shamandura]

I'd hold onto it if it isnt completely dead. I've revived a few plants from stores that were price marked down, because apparently they had been overwatered, but still had a chance.

[lindamarie927]

I know this is an old post from last month. But pansies will only continue to bloom OUTDOORS! It's nothing you did; they can't stay inside long-term and bloom. If you plant them outside (If you have a place) they will bloom as long as it is cool. When it gets hot, they die back. With care, they come back year after year.