I bought a small daphne plant (not rock daphne) in May, quite a small plant in a 10 or 12 inch planter. I haven't transplanted it yet; I am looking for advice on which conditions it would do well in. It is looking quite sickly right now, turning yellow. Possibly has been overwatered.
for one, Daphnes hate being in containers. if you can name the variety a bit more advice will be much easier, otherwise, describe it as best you can and maybe we ( hortboard members) can help you out.
well, the planting medium looks like a lot of coarse bark and pumice stone, should be tough to over water, but... As for the medium we have for potted rock daphne, usually very heavy clay soil. I would say we lose maybe 30% from March to May after potting. Just a tough one all round for containers, no easy answer why though, not from me anyways. :)
I grow a number of different species of daphne in my garden, in light shade, in sandy soil which I have ammended a bit with organic material over the years. Once planted, I try never to move a daphne as transplanting seems a problem. If you mean to plant this daphne out, the cooler weather should help, and try to keep the soil moist but not waterlogged. Full sun is generally recommended in English gardening books, but like many Vancouver gardeners, I do not have any in my garden! Good drainage seems to be the most important factor. I am always amazed at the weight of the pots of Daphne cneorum, the rock daphne, at garden centres. I assume the clay soil helps to protect the root fibres when the daphne is transplanted. Good luck with your daphne..hopefully it will pick up again by next spring!
