On Thursday, 24 July 2014 09:43:29 UTC+1, Sacha wrote:
On 2014-07-24 00:58:12 +0000, FrankB said:



"Sacha" wrote in message

...

On 2014-07-23 15:03:18 +0000, FrankB said:



"FrankB" wrote in message news:...

I've been growing a Salvia 'Patens' in a 2L pot and it was doing fine

until

the last 2 weeks some worrying dark brown spots and blotches have

started

to

appear on the leaves, young and old. Any ideas?



Are you keeping it pretty dry and watering only when necessary? Let it

drain between watering, too and don't let the leaves get splashed with

water through which sunlight can burn them.



Hi Sacha.



I have 2 photos of the problem.



https://www.flickr.com/photos/120747...ostream/lightb

ox/



https://www.flickr.com/photos/120747...ostream/lightb

ox/



As regards watering I rang up a nursery today where a guy who seemed to know

about Salvias told me that this problem may arise if they are not watered

enough and that I should not let them get dry in the pot. I originally

suspected it was a fungal problem, but he didn't think so and I can see

nothing on the web that suggests that Salvias are affected by fungal

diseases..I've ruled out siun scorch as some of the leaves higher up the

plant have started to show symptoms whereas I always water with the nozzle

of my can close to the soil surface, so upper leaves don't get splashed..



I showed your photo to Ray and he agrees with your nurseryman that,

unlike most (!) you've let them get too dry but repeats that you

shouldn't over-water and let them drain between waterings. We have a

large Salvia leucantha Santa Barbara and a Salvia guaranitica in two

separate pots and they get a splash once a day. There's a fine balance

between giving them sufficient water and killing them with too much in

this hot weather. Our pots are terracotta and very tall sort of Ali

Baba shaped things. We can see from the outside roughly where the damp

level is. But if you're using plastic pots, as yours seem to be, it

would be a good idea to raise them a little to let the water drain

freely, just to make sure your watering regime doesn't go too far the

other way.

--



Sacha

www.hillhousenursery.com

South Devon

www.helpforheroes.org.uk

My Salvia gauranitica - bought from you ten years or so ago Sacha, is in the open ground (east coast sand), full sun and gets no watering and doesn't seem to mind at all. I have never brought it in over winter and though it looked very poorly during that wet summer we had, it survived five inches of snow for two weeks and then the following winter minus five for a couple of weeks. Tougher than it looks if given drainage I think.

Karen