Alpinia vittata newly planted leaves curling up

[miamicuse]

I bought an Alpinia vittata in a 15 gallon pot about a month ago.  It stayed in the pot for three weeks in a spot near by where I ultimately planted it with no issue.

I then put it into the ground last weekend.

I watered it every other day, the soil stays damp.  I don't think I overwatered.  The spot is partial sun, gets morning sun from the east but partially shaded the rest of the day.

On day 4 the leaves begin to curl.

Any idea what's going on?  Transplant shot?  Over watered?  Under watered?

[Silas_Sancona]

1 minute ago, miamicuse said:

I bought an Alpinia vittata in a 15 gallon pot about a month ago.  It stayed in the pot for three weeks in a spot near by where I ultimately planted it with no issue.

I then put it into the ground last weekend.

I watered it every other day, the soil stays damp.  I don't think I overwatered.  The spot is partial sun, gets morning sun from the east but partially shaded the rest of the day.

On day 4 the leaves begin to curl.

Any idea what's going on?  Transplant shot?  Over watered?  Under watered?

Could be a experiencing a little transplant shock, but i'm wondering how long are you watering?   Leaves on mine ( different sp. ) will curl like this when i'm not watering enough to allow the water to soak through the entire root ball.  Might put the hose on it ( near the center of the plant ) and allow it to slowly soak for an hour or so.   Stalks would be turning brown from the bottom up,  and collapsing if it was drowning.  Sometimes roots can fill a pot so densely that even dumping a couple gallons on it barely wets the soil ( ...around the roots. Most of the water applied runs off to the sides rather than soaking through. ).

[miamicuse]

I just took a slender bamboo stick and pushed it into the soil near the center of the plant to a depth of 18 inches and when I pulled it back out the entire 18" feels damp.  I can try watering longer tomorrow or run a soaker hose around it.

[Silas_Sancona]

7 minutes ago, miamicuse said:

I just took a slender bamboo stick and pushed it into the soil near the center of the plant to a depth of 18 inches and when I pulled it back out the entire 18" feels damp.  I can try watering longer tomorrow or run a soaker hose around it.

Soaker hose, run for about 20 - 30 min could work.. I always just drop a reg. hose on newly planted stuff / when i soak established things during the summer ( drier part of the summer esp. Unless we get no rain during our Monsoon Season )  put on low,  and let it deep soak for about the same period of time ( 20 min to an hour )..  Might also take a bigger stick ( w/ the hose running )  and work it around the edge of the root ball / back filled portion of the planting hole to work out any possible air pockets that might exist, just to eliminate that possibility.

This time of year, and since where it is planted isn't in full sun, per your description, you shouldn't have to soak more than say once a week ( maybe only once every 10 days ) since moisture doesn't evaporate as quickly from the soil as quickly as it would during the summer.  Definitely don't want to over water of course..

One thing i noticed about the sandy soil there in FL. is it could pour for an hour yet i could go outside afterwards and dig down a few inches to perfectly dry soil.  Soil, at least in my yard in Bradenton, was extremely Hydrophobic.. Always flooded any planting holes dug well before and while planting to be as sure as possible there weren't any dry pockets.


You could also dilute some Seaweed w/ water ( full strength might be a little too strong, imo  ) and apply around the root zone to help it get through the transplant shock period ( shouldn't last long w/ these.. Most Gingers usually behave a lot like Bananas )..

Regardless, should see it perking up over the next week or two ..won't really see it take off until spring though.  If it still looks really " thirsty" / " dry " after a couple weeks, something else might be going on.

[aussiearoids]

They are a bit cold sensitive .

 

[miamicuse]

1 hour ago, aussiearoids said:

They are a bit cold sensitive .

 

The coldest here in the last few weeks was probably around 65F.

[miamicuse]

On 11/13/2021 at 11:28 PM, Silas_Sancona said:

Soaker hose, run for about 20 - 30 min could work.. I always just drop a reg. hose on newly planted stuff / when i soak established things during the summer ( drier part of the summer esp. Unless we get no rain during our Monsoon Season )  put on low,  and let it deep soak for about the same period of time ( 20 min to an hour )..  Might also take a bigger stick ( w/ the hose running )  and work it around the edge of the root ball / back filled portion of the planting hole to work out any possible air pockets that might exist, just to eliminate that possibility.

This time of year, and since where it is planted isn't in full sun, per your description, you shouldn't have to soak more than say once a week ( maybe only once every 10 days ) since moisture doesn't evaporate as quickly from the soil as quickly as it would during the summer.  Definitely don't want to over water of course..

One thing i noticed about the sandy soil there in FL. is it could pour for an hour yet i could go outside afterwards and dig down a few inches to perfectly dry soil.  Soil, at least in my yard in Bradenton, was extremely Hydrophobic.. Always flooded any planting holes dug well before and while planting to be as sure as possible there weren't any dry pockets.


You could also dilute some Seaweed w/ water ( full strength might be a little too strong, imo  ) and apply around the root zone to help it get through the transplant shock period ( shouldn't last long w/ these.. Most Gingers usually behave a lot like Bananas )..

Regardless, should see it perking up over the next week or two ..won't really see it take off until spring though.  If it still looks really " thirsty" / " dry " after a couple weeks, something else might be going on.

I used a hose and let it run on low for about 20 minutes yesterday afternoon.  This morning the leaves are looking better.  The lower leaves seem to be have uncurled, the higher leaves are still curled.  I will keep an eye on it.  Thanks.

[miamicuse]

so my Alpinia Vittata has been doing great for the entire year.  But last three days the leaves curled up again.  I am not too surprised, as the Christmas weekend it went down to the 40s.  This is a sign of stress from the cold I think.  Anything I can do to help it recover?  Watering more? or less?