For larger plants or trees, it can take months or even years for all problems caused by transplant shock to resolve. A simple case of
But the good news is that, in most cases, plants can recover from transplant shock and go on to thrive in their new home. Even if your plants look like they're beyond hope, it's worth giving them a chance to recover. With a little care and attention, you may be surprised at how quickly they bounce back.
Plants and trees can experience transplant shock for two weeks to five years. It is more likely that the plant will die if the transplant shock persists for a long time.
If it is a plant with a main stem, cut off half of each leaf. Keep roots moist – Keep the soil well-watered, but make sure that the plant has good drainage and is not in standing water. Wait patiently – Sometimes a plant just needs a few days to recover from transplant shock.
It can be quite normal for plants to temporarily stop growing after repotting, especially if you went up a lot bigger in pot size. What you want to try to avoid is transplant stress, such as yellowing, wilting, dropping leaves, roots that don't recover, root rot or even plant death.
The telltale signs of shock are yellowing or brown wilted leaves that droop drastically. Often a stressed plant becomes very delicate and the leaves easily fall off, if touched or bumped.
The solution not only stimulates root growth for faster blooms compared to unfed plants, it also helps prevent transplant shock. Grow stronger plants with Miracle-Gro®.
Sugar water does not do anything to help plants with transplant shock, and it can make it worse. Often, plants recover on their own. Just give them time, keep them well-watered and protect them from too much sun to prevent more leaf scorch.
How to revive plants from transplant shock? Trimming back of old, dried leaves and foliage, adding some sugar to the root zone, and keeping the root ball moist always helps your plants to fasten their recovery.
A plant's leaves may show a telltale sign of transplant shock by wilting when you re-pot the plant. Other than this, a plant drooping after repotting may be in response to the soil, amount of water, lighting conditions or even its new pot.
However, repotting can be a somewhat traumatic experience for plants, and some are more sensitive to this disruption than others. The journey from the garden center to your home is quite an adjustment for your plants, and they should be given a little time to rest before repotting.
Repotting a houseplant can be quite stressful for the plant. The gardener knows for plants to thrive, they must leave the comforts of the nursery or greenhouse and extend their roots into new and larger volumes of soil.
It's okay if the soil feels damp, but it should not be soggy and especially not soaking. Both overwatering and underwatering your indoor plant at this point could worsen its transplant shock, so water the plant only when its soil begins drying out.
A dilute, high-phosphorous fertilizer is preferable at transplant. We recommend Neptune's Harvest Fish Fertilizer (2-4-1), which is approved for certified-organic farms, or SeaCom PGR Seaweed Concentrate (0-4-4).
Magnesium sulfate (Epsom salt) can help reduce transplant shock by providing essential nutrients and nutrient absorption to the plant. Magnesium is a key component in the makeup and creation of chlorophyll.
The absorption of these nutrients encourages more rapid growth in the plant. Therefore, pouring soda on plants, such as Classic Coca Cola, is inadvisable. Coke has a jaw dropping 3.38 grams of sugar per ounce, which would certainly kill the plant, as it would be unable to absorb water or nutrients.
Keep a close eye on your fresh transplants for a week or two. They may need more frequent watering in the first week or two. It is possible, and even likely, that your transplants may experience some leaf drop in the days and weeks after, from the stress. Monitor the soil, and if they dry out, water them generously.
Symptom. Leaf scorch is a common symptom of transplant shock. Leaf scorch first appears as a yellowing or bronzing of tissue between the veins or along the margins of leaves of deciduous plants (those that lose their leaves in winter). Later, the discolored tissue dries out and turns brown.
Standard Miracle-Gro “all purpose plant food” fertilizers are synthetic and should not be used in organic gardens.
In addition to the root system being disturbed, the plant must also readjust to its new home. Much like people moving to a new state with increased humidity or colder temperatures, a plant can become shocked by the movement and the new surroundings. Many times, transplant shock is inevitable.
With proper care and extra watering until the roots are more established, a plant can overcome transplant shock. If proper care isn't provided, the plant may decline or die.
Loosening the root ball when repotting is only essential when the plant has become completely root bound. In cases where they are not completely rootbound, you may be able to plant directly into the next pot. If the roots are not wrapped tightly around each other, there is no need to cut and disturb them.