Polygala Myrtifolia advice and help please

Hi All, first post so hoping for some advice and help. I 'invested' in 2x polygala myrtifolia standards from Homebase nearly dead sale, one has flourished the other seems to be dying - some of it's leaves have a blue hue and feel crepey - it has flower buds but just looks dry and a lot of dead leaves - it's been with me for a month and no new leaf growth. Any suggestions on how to fix ? I've watered and fed but if anything it looks worse ? Thank you in advance

 

Not a plant I have grown, but if after a month there are no signs of any new shoots, it may be too far gone.

A good test for any such woody stemmed plant, is to gently run your finger nail down the bark for 10mm , if it reveals a green layer then its alive, if its brown or black then that section is dead.

If the main stem shows green, think I would be temped to cut back nearly all the top growth and hope it will send out some new shoots from the top of the main stem.

Misting the stem should help any new buds break out of the harder bark.

You could also tap it out of the pot and see if there are any signs of good whitish roots; if its not growing , it can be way too easy to over water and rot any remaining good roots.

 

Hi, thank you for your reply - I really want to try and save it. I'd considered to cut back top growth but thought it needed leaves to grow - maybe at this point a Stick is preferable ! - I'll try your suggestions - thank you !

 

Looking at those few greenish leaves , doubt they are making much difference to the plants health.

If its want to live, think it stands more chance without them in the hope it can push out some new healthy shoots.

The worst thing will be if its got some form of virus, then any new growth will likely be the same and the plant lost.

Best thing to do, is take some cuttings from the other plant, a mix of compost and perlite etc in this warm weather and they should soon root.

 

opps

 

Thank you for the advice - I think it's definitely a pruning job - apparently they like acidic soil too so may Investigate that to see if helps new growth.