Why basil wilting

Place it in bright, indirect light rather than in full sun and water your plant every time the surface of the soil feels dry to touch. Once the plant has perked up and new foliage is growing, you can place your plant back in direct sunlight and resume normal care. Avoiding underwatering can be difficult, but developing a habit for checking the water needs of your plants every day or two is a good strategy to prevent it from happening.

Alternatively, you can use a self-watering pot , or even grow your Basil in a smart plant pot , to automate the care process. Lower temperatures can also increase the risk of overwatering, due to reduced plant water requirements and lower evaporation. If your Basil plant is growing inside, you will rarely have issues with the temperature, unless your plant is placed next to a drafty window. When growing basil outside, make sure all risk of frost is gone before you sow seeds or move your plants outside.

Sometimes, lighting problems can be a cause of a basil plant dying. Basil plants prefer full sun, so south- or west-facing windows are ideal. Full sun is great for most of the year but can be a little much in the heat of the summer, so watch for scorched or crispy leaves, which should be a sign to move it back from the window. If your Basil plant is dying due to a lighting issue, low light is by far the more likely cause.

Low light will cause slow, leggy growth, and new leaves will tend to be smaller or stunted. Your Basil plant responds to lower light by arranging the chlorophyll in the leaves to catch as much light as possible.

This can make the leaves appear more vibrantly green than normal, and you may think your plant is the picture of health. However, persisting low light will soon lead to yellowing of the leaves, brown lower leaves, leaf drop, and eventually cause your basil plant to languish or die. If you hold your hand up in an area of bright, indirect light, your hand should cast a shadow with a fuzzy border. If there is no shadow being cast at all, the light is probably insufficient for your plant.

Although there are a few troublesome diseases that can affect Basil plants, there are really only two that will result in a Basil plant dying or wilting badly. Fusarium wilt is a group of soil-borne fungal diseases that affect numerous ornamental and edible plants.

This fungal infection attacks the plant, blocking xylem vessels , preventing the transport of water and nutrients through the plant. Presenting symptoms including stunting of growth, wilting, yellowing leaves, fungal deposits on stems and leaves, and rotting of stems.

If your plant has fusarium wilt, the only solution is to dispose of the plant and take great care not to infect your other plants. I would advise disposing of the soil and sterilizing the pot thoroughly before growing anything else in it. Root rot is a disease caused by a collection of bacteria and fungi which result in similar symptoms and have a common cause. Anaerobic conditions in the soil of your basil plant weaken the roots and allow opportunistic organisms to attack the roots of your plant.

Root rot can often be devastating, leading to your basil plant dying, but early infection can sometimes be cured. Root rot and overwatering go hand in hand, so if you spot any signs of this, check your plant thoroughly. Repotting your plant and removing all affected roots is essential, and you should take care to water conservatively after repotting so the plant has a chance to recover.

Inside, the biggest culprits are aphids and spider mites. Sowing or planting basil in pots is always the best option as pots give you full control over the soil profile. I use multi-purpose compost from the garden center for growing basil as it retains water and does not contain any soil pathogens which may be present in garden soil such as fusarium wilt that can cause your basil to wilt. Planting basil in pots can avoid slow draining soils or boggy soils that retain too much moisture.

Consistently damp soils cause root rot and your basil can wilt and turn yellow as a sign of stress. Plant basil in large pots or containers with drainage holes in the base so that excess water can escape and the soil can maintain the balance of moisture whilst also being well draining.

When growing basil indoors I often see people plant basil with the appropriate pots with drainage holes in the base but they use a drip tray or a saucer underneath the pot to catch excess water so it does not spill out onto the window sill or on furniture. Drip trays that catches the excess water keeps the soil too boggy which can cause the basil to wilt as a sign of stress. If you are growing basil indoors I recommend taking the pot outdoors to water the basil so that water does not spoil furniture or place a paper towel under the pot for half an hour or so until water has stopped trickling from the base of the pot.

One of the most common reasons for basil wilting is because they are planted in pots that are too small. Basil that is planted in the pots from the garden center are often too small and you should re-pot basil in a larger pot in the garden. Basil is an adaptable herb that can grow in all sorts of pots and containers as long as it has good drainage but pots that are too small dry out quickly in the blazing sun. Basil requires full sun to grow its best but small pots have less capacity for soil and therefore can hold less moisture so they tend to dry out too quickly for basil to thrive.

Also be aware that metal and plastic containers conduct heat which causes more soil evaporation and the basil to wilt quickly. Growing basil successfully in small pots is possible if you closely monitor the levels of soil moisture and water accordingly but the plant will always be more vulnerable to drought.

The best way to prevent basil from wilting in a pot is to plant it in a larger pot or container of at least 12 inches across and use terracotta, clay or ceramic pots as these materials do not heat up quickly as opposed to metal or thin plastic pots.

Basil can be transferred into a larger pot when handled carefully and water the pot as regularly as required to keep the soil moist to prevent wilting. If basil is not regularly pruned for its delicious leaves then it can go to flower. The flowers are attractive to bees and have a sweet aroma so this is not necessarily a bad thing but once the plant flowers it will go to seed and stop producing new leaves. After it goes to seed the basil often wilts and at this point the leaves are not as suitable for cooking.

Most basil cultivars are tender annuals that last only one year, but you can keep the seeds for sowing next Spring and the are often very cheap at the garden center. Regular pruning from the top of the plant allows more light to reach lower leaves and encourages a bushier more productive basil plant that last much longer so prune regularly to keep the plant healthy and prevent it from going to seed and wilting in appearance.

For more information read my article why is my basil flowering? Basil is a tender herb that is sensitive to fluctuations and extremes of temperature which is why most cultivars are regarded as annuals.

If there has been consistent mild temperatures followed by a sudden cold snap the basil can wilt as a sign of stress even if the temperature has not gone below freezing. If the basil has any damage due to cold such as curling leaves or brown edges to the wilting leaves then prune these leaves off which stimulates more growth of healthy leaves and speed up recovery.

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