They Get Questions in Nevada
The Las Vegas Review Journal takes all kinds of questions from their readers, including this simple one about some sedum.
Q: I have a Vera Jameson sedum that has grown and spread. However, the plant leaves in the center are dying. I have planted this in the front yard where it receives full sun all day. I water it every day for four minutes in the morning with a shrubbler. I have placed rubber mulch around the base of the plant and two days ago I added some liquid plant fertilizer that I diluted in water.
I also have a Spanish bayonet yucca that the bottom leaves are turning brown from the tips. The trunk looks healthy. This also is receiving full sun and I have been watering it for four minutes each day on a shrubbler drip system.
A:…When I first read your e-mail, it struck me that the problem was either with the soil or with irrigation. But, after finding out that you are watering every day for four minutes, I think the major problem for you is water.
Four minutes of water does not tell me much. I do not know if four minutes of water is the same as 1 gallon or 1 teaspoon. You should apply enough water so that you irrigate to a depth of 12 inches for the sedum and even deeper for the yucca. The sedum will require water more often than the yucca….
When you do water, try to water more deeply and less often to give the soil and plant roots a chance to breathe.
Both plants… should not be watered daily. The yucca can be watered less often than the sedum, but probably not more than once a week. I would think every two weeks should be adequate, but it is hard to know without knowing other things like what the soil is like.
Well, I could have told you that. Of course, there’s more to the answer than all that, so click through to find out about build up of salts and the author’s opinion of the rubber mulch too.