Expert: C.L. Fornari - 6/10/2006

Question
I live in Ohio and I have several hanging baskets with wave petunia's in them and the underneath leaves are dieing out on them and they are getting poor looking. I have pinched them back. Do I need to ferilize them with something special to make them look healthier?

Answer
Cheryl,
Wave petunias do need either time-release fertilizer or a liquid feed every two weeks - use a product like Osmocote Indoor/Outdoor or Proven Winners fertilizer - don't use so called "bloom booster" fertilizers because they don't have enough nitrogen.

Failing of underneath leaves could be dying because the plant has dried out between waterings, OR a sign of too much water.  Basically, you want to water the plant deeply, then don't water again until the soil is dry. but don't let plants wilt. given regular water (but not too much water) and fertilizer, Wave usually blooms it's heart out all summer.

Pinching it back was a good idea as well.

I hope this helps!
C.L.