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I messed up and repotted my new croton too soon. He’s placed in 8 hours bright light and I repotted him about 2/3 days after purchase. Did I give him too much light too soon? How can I help him? :(

#HappyPlants #help #helpneeded #Croton #PlantTherapy

@JustPlainDee · Answer

It wasn't the LIGHTing that shocked him, it was the re-potting.   #Croton plants do not like change and they shock easily and often when fussed with too frequently, @robbi_rose ... 
They love sunLIGHT, that actually keeps their colors vibrant.  
Also... DO NOT water a #Croton every five(5) days, it will suffocate.  They are low-WATERing plants, ohkay?

Is the soil currently wet, damp, moist, or dry?

🌿 Good Luck! 🌿

@JustPlainDee · Answer

I understand about wanting to repot a new plantbaby 🤗 but certain plants survive and thrive better when we ignore that "rule of thumb," @robbi_rose ... You have lived to learn that #Croton are among that "certain" -- they can be finicky 👌🏽

Ohkay... nine(9) days 👍🏽 not bad, because you'd ideally want to get a WATERing schedule between 2-3 weeks for a Croton. Keep that sunLIGHT shining and test the soil again in 3-4 days.

** bear in mind that Croton do not tolerate windy, cold draftiness sooooo you're right at the line, temperature-wise in Calgary for their tolerance.  Do You have an alternate growing spot for Manny planned for when your temperature drops one(1) or two(2) more degrees?

🌿 Keep Growing! 🌿

@TexanExpat · Answer

@robbi_rose , I concur with @JustPlainDee ‘s insight in that Crotons can certainly be high maintenance drama queens fussy about change yet  demanding for bright light for their beautiful foliage. I supplement with this: about every once in a while I get a plant that goes into transplant shock.   It rarely happens, but when it does, i always regret it if I did not do more to mitigate against shock prophylacticly.   This goes a little broader than the instant discussion but I think having a generalized protocol for bringing home plants is not only prudent but can safeguard against many foreseeable risks.  When bringing a plant home, I use a Castile soap spray to clean off the foliage and check for pests.  If it’s time to water, I use a preventative anti-fungal and anti pest soil drench (arber for example).  Regardless of what kind of light the plant usually likes, it never goes in bright light at first, i put it in moderate light no direct sun and let it acclimate.  If you have place you can put the plant to serve the of providing transition conditions (not bright light, yet good light; no drafts, temperature extremes, etc.) as well as somewhere the plant can isolated and quarantined, thus will safeguard against pathogens and pests.  Be mindful that any plant you take home can look free of disease, only to manifest sometimes a couple of weeks later.   Shock often results from more one contributing cause, if the plant is not used to the new light levels, the new substrate it’s in, and any other environmental factors, each factor can add to the likelihood that shock will occur.  You can mitigate the risks by letting the plant settle under moderate light for 2-3 weeks then try lifting in new potting mix.  If it’s been 9 days and it’s still damp, I am wondering whether the soil you put it in has sufficient drainage.  If it did not, lack of oxygen to the roots could have a contributing favor if not the sole cause.  Generally when repotting I’m not aware of any plant that can go into a pre-made mix thar doesn’t need to mix amended to improve drainage.  People often talk about “overwatering”. This term is misnomer.  When watering, use a narrow spout sweeting can and move it slowly and methodically across the surface of the mix, ensuring that water can saturate all of the mix.  Once water starts coming out the bottom, stop.  This is the best water technique. However, if one has used, for example, Miracle Gro potting mix without amending it , the mix may retain too much moisture for too long a time that the roots become deprived of oxygen and a fungal infection in the roots ensues. However, the same mix amended with 10-15% perlite would have provided sufficient drainage such that the mix did not retain excess moisture unduly.  Some people call this “overwatering” Bieber I don’t find this nomenclature helpful as it does not directly address the underlying cause —If you’re using rhe what watering technique consistently, any root rot that occurs is not error in technique but unsuitable substrate.  If you think your mix is saturated, you risk further stressing the plant if you needs with the soil.  I think the most prudent thing to do would be to facilitate evaporation.  Take off any soil dressing, put the plant ina warm area with (not direct light) with good ventilation and hope the plant rebounds. Hope that helps !

@JustPlainDee · Answer

When the temperature drops outside, moving him back will help. 👍🏽

No, don't try to water now, @robbi_rose ... allow the soil to dry.

🌿 Keep Growing! 🌿

@TexanExpat · Answer

@robbi_rose  let me give you a basic rule of thumb and then apply it specifically to this plant so that you understand the decision making process.  For any plant, start with identifying what it’s native conditions are.  Is it from an arid habitat like a cactus? The first floor like a fern ? Is it from the rain forest under the jungle canopy ? Is it a tropical plant in the coastal areas like a palm? Plants like a cactus don’t like wet feet and what thus means is their roots have evolved in arid soil and they prone to rot in the roots are sitting in too much moisture for too long. For plants like on the jungle floor, they may want soil that is consistently moist but not wet.  Others like philodendrons like the soil to dry out more than other jungle plants. Once you make this determination you know what to look for.  If you a soil probe or stick your finger in the top two inches and it’s still pretty moist, you won’t need to water it.  If it’s starting to get dry in the top two inches, for a plant that wants moist but not wet soil it’s time to water.  For a cactus you’ll want it ti dry out further.   The dawn of the era of AI has made obtaining this information pretty easy.  However, artificial intelligence is a nascent technology prone to error.  Personally, I always verify what the AI says by cross referencing with another resource.  I like to go the thespruce.com. I won’t get into the specifics of how to access the app, unless you want me to, but you can put in a prompt like this: Answer query as if you’re a horticultural expert: Describe the native habitat of a tropical croton like the mammy cultivar for the purposes of ascertaining the appropriate time to water a potted specimen.  Here is the answer it gives: Tropical crotons, such as the Mammy cultivar, originate from regions with a humid, tropical climate. Their native habitat includes areas like Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands. In their natural environment, they typically grow in well-draining, rich, and slightly acidic soils. To ascertain the appropriate time to water a potted tropical croton like Mammy, you should replicate these conditions. Keep the soil consistently moist but not waterlogged, allowing the top inch or so of the soil to dry out between waterings. Monitoring the moisture level in the top layer of soil is a good indicator of when it's time to water your potted croton. Additionally, maintaining a humid environment and providing bright, indirect sunlight will help mimic their native habitat and promote healthy growth. So I’m sun, I expect they if you put your finger in the soil it would be dry, and thus time to water.  Moving forward, The great thing about greg is that it uses big data to help you identify when it is you should probe the soil with your finger.  The algorithm used is highly sophisticated.  When Greg says it’s time to what it really means is it’s time for you to probe the soil. If its wet, don’t water, but hit snooze and check again when prompted by Greg. If it’s dry, then water until prompted by Greg again. I hope they helps not just your instant question,  but equips you to cultivate a beautiful specimen over time

@TexanExpat · Answer

@robbi_rose if you find AI is something you find helpful, you can use it to ascertain the optimal potting mix with a prompt such as this: Provide recipe for potting mix for alocasia and Colocasia species starting with fox farms happy frog mix as a base and whatever amendments appropriate.  I have fir bark, horticultural charcoal, perlite and vermiculite.  Plants will be in a plastic container.  They will be indoors for the near future but will be transitioned outdoors when temperature is not excessively hot or cold.  The environment is Texas hill country under a heavy m canopy of live oak

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