We used to have a small waterfall in our pond, and there was a filter which hosed water back into the pond, via the 'waterfall' which was a stream-like affair, running down on 3 levels, before the water went back into the main pond. One bright spring day, having bought some watercress for salad, from a supermarket, I noticed that some stems had roots forming, but I knew that watercress prefers moving water (My SiL lives near a watercress farm in Hampshire) so I stuck these stems into the top section of the waterfall, and placed a flat stone on top to keep them there. Within 3 weeks, I had to pick and divide the clump, and keeping an amount in the top section for the duration of the summer, gave us plentiful supplies of fresh, peppery watercress, AND - it filtered the water amazingly well!

I had the same problem trying to grow things under a sycamore here. I became too busy with things and couldn't take care of the bed well (with watering mainly) and so scrapped the bed. There is still a strip inbetween the tree and the foundation though, just not directly under it any more. You are not alone, I also found the tree slurped up a lot of nutrients from the surrounding soil. Seriously, some pockets of soil underneath looked devoid of any nutrients. The problem I had was that most of the plants did indeed seem to need yearly feedings to keep from noticeably dwindling in size. There is only so much compost one can put on that sort of bed, especially since too much build up of the soil won't exactly be good for the tree and the roots and "smother" them if too much is used. The strip I have is also getting tapped out in the nutrient department, though I composted it generously the fall before last. I'm going to get some good organic fertilizer for this area and give them a helping in those years I am not able to compost. Liquid fish fertilizer is also a pretty easy way to give them a booster. Alfalfa pellets did okay, but I'm not sure that alone would be enough. Ps. it is not impossible to grow under trees. I had several plants that did surprisingly well there, with regular watering and a bit of nutrient supplements from time to time. Epimedium, Cymbalaria, Omphaloides (surprising), Polygonatum, certain Geraniums, to name a few. Sometimes in "difficult" areas I plant somewhat invasive spreaders, since they are kept more in check in this situation. Carex morrowii, variegated ribbon grass, Ajuga, creeping jenny, Dicentra (formosa I think it was), Limelight Artemesia, Lamium, etc. It's just a matter of finding what what works well for you and a little extra upkeep... Just my thoughts anyway! CMK

Dogwoods are understory trees and appreciate a bit of shade. And they are not the slightest bit drought tolerant. So avoid full, all day sun and provide plenty of water, And what you may be seeing around town could be eastern dogoods, Cornus florida, which can be prone to a number of leaf issues that could produce a dry, shriveled, sunburned look.

Hello! For the top plant, I can see the mutilation and scarring. I'm thinking pests for that one, but not an expert, so i don't know what you can do for it. For the lower plant, it looks like a case of overwatering..... Unpot it and check for squishy parts. That indicates rot, and you will need to cut off ALL mushy parts. I wouldn't be too optimistic about the middle and right one... Not sure if they are too far gone or not... Check the roots of the one on the left also. That one looks definitely savable, but there could be rot there. So you say there is no drainage? I am going to say that that is your (main?) problem. I understand that on campus it can be hard to get some of these things, but I think you should get some terra cotta pots, as well as some perlite. Mix some cactus and succulent soil with perlite (40% C&S, 60% perlite). That will ensure that your plants won't rot. Your plants also look stretched from lack of sunlight, too. If you can't do better in terms of sunlight, you could try to get your hands on a new growing lamp as well. That's pretty much all I have to say, unless I can think of something else... ~palmsandnow