The most common problems with oleander include drought damage, in which leaves and shoots dry out and turn brown. This phenomenon is usually due to unsuitable wintering - because it is too cold - and / or incorrect care during the winter months.
What to do if an oleander is dried out?
If an oleander has dried out, this is often due to incorrect watering behavior during wintering or an infection with Ascochyta dry rot. You can save the plant by vigorous pruning, root cutting and repotting in fresh substrate with slow-release fertilizer.
Watering properly during the winter months
If you take your oleander from its winter quarters when it is dry, you have most likely watered the plant either too little or too much. Many hobby gardeners forget to water their overwintering potted plants from time to time - an often fatal mistake, because the oleander needs water even in the cold season. The rule applies that the warmer the bush is, the more often it needs to be watered - at the same time, the plant also needs more light. The colder it is in the winter quarters, the darker it can be and the less moisture the oleander needs. As a general rule, you should provide potted oleanders with water about once a month at an average temperature of around five degrees Celsius.
Frequent watering in winter quarters can also be harmful
By the way, the plant can also dry out if it has been watered too much. Then the roots are damaged and can no longer absorb water, which is why the above-ground parts eventually turn brown and die.
Ascochyta dry rot often appears after the winter break
On the other hand, the cause of a dry oleander does not necessarily have to be due to incorrect watering behavior. Dried leaves and shoots can be traced back to an infection with Ascochyta dry rot, which is common on this shrub and initially causes individual parts of the plant and then the entire plant to die. This typical oleander disease often occurs after overwintering, but can also occur during the growing season. As a rule, only a strong cut back into he althy wood helps.
How to save a dry oleander
Dried oleanders can only be saved by vigorous to radical pruning, because the parts of the plant that have already dried out have died and will not turn green or sprout again. Before pruning, check whether the plant is still alive - you can carefully scratch a few shoots; if they are green, the bush is alive. Cut the bush back and repot it in a new planter with a mixture of fresh substrate (€7.00 on Amazon) and long-term fertilizer. Beforehand, carry out a root pruning, removing all brown roots.
Tip
Basically, oleander leaves, similar to rosemary needles, feel quite hard and rather dry. As long as they are green and look vital, this is completely normal - only if they turn brown does there be dry damage.
