Shop Products
Houzz Logo Print
karhystea

Gynura aurantiaca (Purple Velvet Plant) help please!

KaRhysTea
9 years ago

Hello :)
My poor purple plant has taken a turn for the worse!! I'm hoping someone might have an idea on how I can save her..
We've been together about a year now, and she lived just fine in my front window. We've even battled some pretty intense aphid infestations throughout the winter just fine.

A friend recently gave me a bag of Sea Soil, and I thought maybe the purple plant might like a bit of that. I just put a small scoop right on top of the soil, and a bit of water to soak it in.

A day or two later all the leaves are wilted and looking like its been poisoned or something! I'm guessing the Sea Soil was way to rich for this little plant that was already doing just fine without any fertilizer..

And now I don't know what to do. I'm worried I've killed the poor thing :(
I scooped out all the Sea Soil plus more, and ran a bunch of water through what is left, in the hopes of rinsing it all through.. should I get rid of all the soil and rinse the roots, repot? try to take cuttings? leave it alone?

Thanks for any advice you can offer..

Comments (11)

  • KaRhysTea
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    I have one more picture of the full plant..

  • Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
    9 years ago

    What is sea soil? Is there salt in it?

  • KaRhysTea
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Hi purpleinopp; No salt that I know of... this is from their website:

    "What is SEA SOIL?
    SEA SOIL is created by composting a mixture of fish by-product (waste) and forest fines (a logging industry term for bark and the organics that fall off of logs during the sorting process).

    SEA SOIL contains abundant amounts of macro-nutrients, micronutrients and trace elements to produce healthy plants with good growth, strong roots and scores of bright colored blossoms. There is no need for additional commercial fertilizer when applying SEA SOIL.

    SEA SOIL has a weed-free status - meaning it will not bring weeds into your garden unlike many other soils like those composted with manure.

    SEA SOIL increases organic content, is chemical-free and retains moisture. SEA SOIL is for use in plants, pots, containers and gardens or just anywhere you would like to grow plants.

    SEA SOIL is also a value-added solution to responsibly recycling two waste streams. We do not harvest any of our ingredients by excavating from the earth or harvesting any fish from the ocean.

    SEA SOIL is a truly environmentally sound and organic product! It is safe to use anywhere you would grow plants.

    SEA SOIL IS THE WINNER OF THE 2003 & 2004 "BEST ORGANIC ECOLOGICAL PRODUCT" AT VANDUSEN GARDENS.
    Your garden will thank you for it!

    How We Make SEA SOIL
    SEA SOIL is the "fine wine" of organic composted soils, it's how long we compost and how we compost that makes SEA SOIL such a great organically fertilized soil that can be used in many different ways in your garden and or farm.

    SEA SOIL is created by composting a mixture of fish (waste product) and forest fines (a logging industry term for bark and the organics that fall off of logs during the sorting process).

    We compost SEA SOIL for two years in our E.P.I.C (Evolving Practices In Composting) System. Our E.P.I.C System "jump starts" our composting procedure by using the heat already produced by our maturing compost to naturally generate the heat needed to give our SEA SOIL (and micro organisms) a great start.

    We monitor temperatures and aerate our soil to make sure that the micro organisms keep composting efficiently over the next two years.

    SEA SOIL is approved by the Organic Materials Review Institute (O.M.R.I) for use in organic growing.

    "The Family Working Hard To Bring The Best Soil To Your Yard."
    We believe that all soils should have a required minimum set of testing standards when it comes to growing.

    That is why we contacted O.M.R.I years ago to start the process of approving SEA SOIL. We regularly test our SEA SOIL for heavy metals, ecoli and even fecal coliforms to make sure SEA SOIL is the best choice for gardeners and growers."

    Here is a link that might be useful: About Sea Soil

  • pirate_girl
    9 years ago

    Sorry, but I believe your plant is toast.

    If you could show a pic of the center of this plant, we could say better.

    No way to tell how 'small' a scoop you used., likely wayy toooo much!

    If there were living tissue left, one could try to water root it, but I don't see any living tissue from that shot.

  • KaRhysTea
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Hi pirate girl, I don't know that there's much life left in him either. pretty much every leaf looks like the one I posted - blackened from the stem towards the middle to end of leaf.
    I guess I was hoping someone might have a magic card up their sleeve, not quite ready to give up yet ;-)

  • plantomaniac08
    9 years ago

    I think the stuff had way too much fertilizer in it (agreeing with PG here) and it burned the plant. Most likely burned the roots too.

    Planto

  • pelargonium_gw
    9 years ago

    The same thing happened to my african violets one year when I was stupid enough to give them dried hen manure. Too strong!

  • paul_
    9 years ago

    Odd, though. Based on the product's ad and site information, it doesn't seem like you should have had that kind of issue. It is possible that there was some other issue at work and the timing was just coincidental.

    Where you using their brand of potting soil or just the top mulch?

    You could ... and probably should ... contact the company and let them know (send photos if emailing). Make sure you give them a rundown on how much you used and how. Whether they will have any advice or off any compensation, who knows?

    Looks like you might have some viable tissue. You have nothing to lose by taking cuttings. I'd try water rooting.

  • pirate_girl
    9 years ago

    Hi Paul,

    Where do you still see live tissue? Have you grown this plant? It's VERY dead.

    Her description of small amount is probably not going to be helpful to the distributor, & way too vague.

  • paul_
    9 years ago

    â¢Posted by pirate_girl
    Hi Paul,
    Where do you still see live tissue?

    While the leaves are all toast, the stems might still be viable. Too hard to be certain from the photo. There would be no harm in giving stem cuttings ... sans the dead leaves ... a go.

    â¢Posted by pirate_girl
    Have you grown this plant?

    Yes, I have.

    â¢Posted by pirate_girl
    Her description of small amount is probably not going to be helpful to the distributor, & way too vague.

    If she can give them a better estimate than the very very vague descriptor she posted for us, it might be. Sometimes in a post folks don't think to give more precise or accurate descriptors. Didn't know if this was the case for her.

    In any event, whether stem cuttings are attempted or not, Gynura are not typically difficult plants to find nor are they expensive. Obtaining a replacement should be fairly easy.

  • Majellaf
    8 years ago

    Hi, I've been searching for this plant for a long time and cannot find a supplier in the uk. Anyone got the name of a supplier or could send me a cutting? I would be more than happy to pay 24-hour delivery postage. Majella

Sponsored
Water & Earth Landscape Design
Average rating: 4.9 out of 5 stars37 Reviews
Best of Houzz Landscape Design Serving Richmond VA & Silicon Valley CA