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May 15, 2014 | #1 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 12
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Basil wilting and dying
i try to grow basil very year with no luck - it tends to wilt and die at about 5 inches. Ive tried direct sun/part sun, dry soil, moist soil to no avail. what is the trick?
Do i need to begin snipping back at a certain height to encourage new and continued growth? |
May 15, 2014 | #2 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Vancouver Island
Posts: 5,931
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Basil hates wind and weather and is quite susceptible to fungal diseases so don't try to grow it in garden soil, use a soilless mix in a pot instead. I have the best luck in the shelter of my greenhouse. try it in sun, out of any wind or rain and water it from the bottom. I grow it in hanging baskets and find it does best for me. ordinary sweet basil is the easiest to grow. keep trying, it's worth it
you can cut it back after a say 3 sets of leaves and it will send out side shoots to make a bushier plant KarenO Last edited by KarenO; May 15, 2014 at 04:09 PM. |
May 15, 2014 | #3 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: May 2011
Location: Laurinburg, North Carolina, zone 7
Posts: 3,207
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Ever since I started waiting for hot weather and started direct sowing basil I've had really great basil crops.
I give basil my hottest, sunniest parts of the garden. It's so nice for us to have fresh pesto or anything green in the mid to late summer. Mine are just now getting large enough to make pesto and I'm in AZ. I never grow it in pots as it seems to like a lot of room for roots and it also appreciates even moisture. |
May 15, 2014 | #4 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Cheektowaga, NY
Posts: 2,466
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I never had any problems growing basil, in ground or in containers.
I haven't seen Basil Downy Mildew yet but it is a relatively new pathogen that you should be aware of. EXPECT AND PREPARE FOR DOWNY MILDEW IN BASIL |
May 15, 2014 | #5 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Portland, OR
Posts: 625
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I live just south of you in Portland and have great luck with basil. I use a seed starting mix and keep it warm and not too wet until the weather warms up. Mine has been outside for over a month now and over the last several days I have direct planted it into my garden. I have about 30 sets of plants and they range from 4-10 inches tall, depending on the variety.
Please provide more info about how you start it, temperature, sunlight, etc. |
July 10, 2014 | #6 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Zone 5B Illinois
Posts: 402
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Well I think may plants have succumbed to downy mildew this stinks. Should I pull my plants or can I already them with something?
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Andrea |
July 10, 2014 | #7 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Cheektowaga, NY
Posts: 2,466
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A Phosphorous acid fungicide (Organicide Plant Doctor (Excel LG), Agri-Fos ) is going to be your best control if you already have plants infected with Downy Mildew.
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June 26, 2015 | #8 | |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Apr 2015
Location: Illinois, zone 5a
Posts: 579
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Quote:
The thing that kills me is that we have the same darned conditions that caused it last year - tons of rain, cloudy days, and cool temps. If anything we've had more rain this year. I feel like spraying it for bugs and bringing it into the house! |
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July 10, 2014 | #9 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Vancouver Island
Posts: 5,931
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Andrea, sorry about your basil,
resow new seed in a pot with soilless mix as I mentioned above, put in a sunny spot out of wind and weather and keep the foliage dry and fungus problems that are soil borne should be less of a problem. There is plenty of time to resow a basket of basil. Not convinced I would want to eat basil treated with fungicide, organic or not. Applying fungicide will not cure the leaves already affected although it may prevent disease on new growth. If it was mine I would start over. Basil grows fast. KO |
July 10, 2014 | #10 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: Ontario
Posts: 3,895
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Andrea,
If you have a friend with some basil, you could always snip a bit and root it in water! If not, maybe you could do the same with some basil that you buy from the store or a market. Linda |
July 10, 2014 | #11 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Eastern Suburb of Sacramento, CA
Posts: 1,313
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OP- have you considered that your soil may have Fusarium, which could be causing the wilt issues you're experiencing with Basil? Are you growing tomatoes in the same bed/soil? If so, are the tomatoes healthy through the entirety of your season? Here are some links (note the pic in the 2nd):
http://plantclinic.cornell.edu/facts...ildiseases.pdf http://www.gardeningknowhow.com/edib...l-diseases.htm Good luck (BTW, I have the same problems w/ Basil in my garden)- -naysen |
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