Ficus Soil Always Wet

[rmhawk]

Anyone have this problem? I havent had to water my ficus cause the soil is always wet. I mist 3 times a day, and the dripper drips into a bowl so it doesnt drip into ficus pot. It has been over a week and the soil still seems to be very wet. Is this normal? For those who have ficus trees in there cham setup, how often do you water your ficus?

It does lose leaves everyday too..

 

[Vampire.queen]

There must be a problem- when the leaves fall it means that the plant is too dry or "flooded".
You better take it out, because too much water all the time can bring some mold...

 

[Sang]

I was loosing leaves every day, i put alot of water through my cages, so i finally had to repot the plant, so there was gravel in the bottom, a mixture of sand and soil, and then i used a pothos around the base of the ficus to help the water go elsewere .


your plant isn't getting any dry out time, so its dropping its leaves, this is a common problem.

 

[cushcameleon]

Your plant is showing the symptoms of overwatering. For many months I experienced the same problems with all of my plants and I could not find a cure. Even with proper elevation, drainage and air flow, I still had plants suffering and dying from overwatering. I finally found that the problem itself was the soil. Since chameleon enclosures receive lots of water, it can often damage the plant. This is way a custom type of soil is a must. Regular soil contains to much clay, which retains water. Adding sand to the mixture allows for much easier drainage and also protects the plant from "sitting" in water. Right now I have been using a half coconut husk and half play sand combination in all my pots. It has been several months and I have still not had one death/problem. For details and proof of it's success, check out my blog https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/cushcameleon/131-custom-plant-soils.html#comment235. I am sure it will help your problem.

 

[writh]

I learn something everyday..

 

[sandrachameleon]

Putting some plastic wrap over most of the soil (after it dries out a bit) can also help reduce how much water gets in there.

 

[hailo]

Your plant is showing the symptoms of overwatering. For many months I experienced the same problems with all of my plants and I could not find a cure. Even with proper elevation, drainage and air flow, I still had plants suffering and dying from overwatering. I finally found that the problem itself was the soil. Since chameleon enclosures receive lots of water, it can often damage the plant. This is way a custom type of soil is a must. Regular soil contains to much clay, which retains water. Adding sand to the mixture allows for much easier drainage and also protects the plant from "sitting" in water. Right now I have been using a half coconut husk and half play sand combination in all my pots. It has been several months and I have still not had one death/problem. For details and proof of it's success, check out my blog https://www.chameleonforums.com/blogs/cushcameleon/131-custom-plant-soils.html#comment235. I am sure it will help your problem.

cush do you think this mixture will work with ficus as well, iread the blog and will try it. did you get the coconut husk from homedepot

 

[cushcameleon]

cush do you think this mixture will work with ficus as well, iread the blog and will try it. did you get the coconut husk from homedepot

Yes, it will work. I got the coconut husk and play sand from a local nursery. I wouldn't be surprised if you could find it at Lowes or Home Depot though.

 

[rmhawk]

thank you!