I BOUGHT THIS ARGYRANTHEMUM MORE THAN A MONTH AGO BUT IT’S NOT GROWING AND THE NEW FLOWERS LOOK DRY AND UNHEALTHY. I AM WATERING EVERY DAY AND USING FERTILISER EVERY 1–2 WEEKS. WHAT AM I DOING WRONG?

Dana Marenco, via Facebook

PHIL DUDMAN SAYS This looks like it may be a spent flower that has started to rot. Best thing to do is go over the plant and pick off any material that looks like what you are holding. This type of regular maintenance will keep your plant looking clean and healthy, and stimulate the formation of fresh flower buds. Fortunately, it looks like you will have plenty of good-looking flowers and buds left behind. Many modern argyranthemum varieties are quite compact, so it’s not surprising that it doesn’t look like it has grown much in the last month, and plants often need that time to settle in. You could step back from watering now. Aim for twice a week for the next two weeks, then once a week. Once established, it only needs watering in particularly dry conditions. When you water, aim the water at the ground and try to keep moisture off the foliage and flower buds. I suspect you are using a liquid fertiliser. You could reduce your applications to once every 2–3 weeks.