Aggressive wilting

[sic transit gloria]

Hi, first post here. I'm a regular at GW, but decided to come over here for a while.

The wilting begins at the top of the plants, and may only affect some of the branches/stems. There is some nighttime recovery, but not much. At first it was just the Neves Azorean Red, then came Golden Queen (not next to each other in the garden), then, and most disturbingly, several in a row next to GQ have developed this wilting.

There are NO spots, NO yellow leaves, no nothing. I looked at the base of the plant and didn't notice much out of the ordinary. I cut a stem and placed it in water. No discharge. What is going on here? Is this disease spreading? I could post pictures, but it will just show very, very droopy plants. I've read about fusarium and verticillium, but these usually have discolored leaves, right? Could it be nematodes?

Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

jason

[tanagerzoo]

The same happened to me one year. The plants continued to wilt and then ultimately died. I reviewed everything. Ruled out all the traditional wilts and whatnot. Ultimately it came down to rot. I was drowning the poor guys with water. I had soaker hoses but never could figure out how much was too much.

Not saying that it is your problem, but are you experiencing a lot of rain or watering frequently? Have poor drainage?

Just a thought.

Christine

[cthomato]

I've had plants with nematodes. The only way you know for sure is to examine the roots. If there are lots of bumps and bulges (galls) on the roots, then you've got it. I hope you don't because they are a persistent problem.

However, I would expect there would be yellow and brown leaves and stems if you had either nematodes or the other diseases you mentioned. I think your problem is related to watering. The question is whether you are over or under watering. Both can cause wilting.

I would check the soil a foot or so away from the plant base. Check a few inches below the mulch layer and see if it's wet, damp, or dry.

Chris

[Suze]

Jason--

Is this the same problem you had discussed w/Carolyn and cbars over at the GW Pest and Disease forum a couple of weeks ago and also with Carolyn in detail last year?

If so, I don't know how much I can add.

Sounds like you've ruled out juglone toxicity, yes? Herbicide drift?

Ruled out spotted wilt? (I'd think so because if it were TSWV (or Cuke mosaic), you'd eventually see symptoms other than wilt on the leaves).

Nematodes in KS? Not that I'm aware of, but you may want to confirm that for yourself.

What about the possibility of bacterial wilts? Have you looked into that?

At this point (since this an ongoing problem) you might want to consult your extension office. You can submit samples for testing and so on.

[sic transit gloria]

I have only watered once this season, due to the ample rainfall. We did have a very wet early season, but that has since passed and we're now into a more normal rainfall. So, I don't think it's under/over watering.

If I dig the straw mulch out of the way, I notice that the ground is moist, but not overly wet.

I'll take some pictures tonight for the heck of it.

Suze, no that problem with the stunted/curled-up leaves actually corrected itself. I think it was just an early-season abnormal growing pattern that I had not seen before. That and two of the plants that had "it" the worst were Prue and Kosovo, both hearts, and as you know, these are funky plants anyway.

This new problem is just straight wilt, no discoloration. I can't find anthing boring into the plants, either. I may contact the extension office, but the last time I did the guy said he would come out, but never did.

My greatest fear is spreading of the disease at this point. Let me ask this: of the known wilting problems, which ones are contagious to adjacent plants? Suze, I think you're right, nematodes aren't supposed to be a problem in KS.

Thanks again.

Jason

[sic transit gloria]

I will say, though, after thinking about this some more, the first thing I did when I saw the plants wilting was to water them. That seems to be the first reaction when one encounters wilt without other symptoms. After watering them, about an hour later many of the stems that were not wilted before were wilted. This may speak to the "over watering" possibility. My garden drains pretty well, so I will be pleasantly surprised if it was overwatering.

jason

[sic transit gloria]

As an update, the wilted plants in question have recovered to a large extent. Some foliage was lost due to being baked by the sun while they were wilted, but things could have been much worse. The blossoms that were on were basically aborted, but this is a small price to pay. Thanks for everyone's help.

jason

[Suze]

Jason, glad to hear the condition of your plants is improving. Are you still thinking it was due to overwatering?

Speaking of overwatering, I actually almost killed a coneflower this year by giving it too much water. I know, I know...a coneflower. I saw it drooping a bit one day when the heat wave set in, so I gave it a good soak. Then my husband saw it wilting later that day, and watered it again. He didn't know I had watered it earlier.

Poor thang just needed a day or two to adjust, and we almost killed it with kindness.