My windowbox of herbs

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luvs

Master Chef
Joined
Aug 24, 2004
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my herbs aren't thriving. my parsly leaves dry out & i hafta pick them to throw out, & my basil dries out. my sage is fine, though kinda droopy.
i use plant food (very minimal amounts) & spray thier leaves, leave my windowbox by sunshine, 'cept they're wilting.
info would be greatly appreciated!!
 
Besides spraying their leaves, don't forget that their roots need water too - you didn't say if they were indoors or out, but anything that's in the sun will need more water than those that aren't.
Also, if you really want to feel like a gardener, plant some radishes too - they'll be sprouting in a matter of days! (and they like much water too)
 
What type of planter box are you using? If it is one of those with the coconut liner than it will need a lot of water.
 
water, water, water, water.

A few of my herbs are like: "I aint growing yet." I guess because of the climate. Just keep watering them and they'll be fine. Sometimes you get some stubborn ones, other times they grow like weeds.
 
hmmm. lemme look...
i plunged through thier soil & it's like a plastic kittty food dish inside of thier box. it's leaky, dagnabbit. we oughta return that box.
 
Sounds like your soil is draining too quickly and not holding moisture.
 
could they maybe be a little over crowded too? I agree on the water, sounds like they are not holding well.
How big is the box?
 
You also may have air pockets, where the roots have a "bubble" of air around them.

When you planted them did you press the soil down around each plant and really soak the soil?
If not, you need to do this.
Even if your water is draining rapidly and you are feeding monthly, if you're watering daily they should be ok, unless airpockets are present. Most mediterrean herbs don't like to keep their feet wet anyway, so good drainage IS important. They also need rich soil.

I repeat to everyone; if you just remember their native environment and duplicate it, unless you've gotten them deseased, any plant will thrive.
 
i concur! yes, thier soil was well-pressed & we watered those babies! i'll press more, to see.
 
i turned my windowbox around & my sage is perking towards sunlight. my basil's fine, droopy as she oughta be, & my parsley is leaning toward sunshine now, too. i'm gonna spray them & dampen thier soil.
thanks, guys!!!:-p
 
Poor little tomatoes, such a short life

:(Hi peoples, remember I said two of my little tomato plants weren't doing very well. I hate to report this to you, but...they've gone to the other side. I'd bury them but that would be kind of redundant wouldn't it? I thought I'd take them down to the parking lot where there is a ribbon of dirt and ?grass, somewhat growing and let them go back to the soil gracefully, LOL. I don't know what happened, but both of those plants started out in the cola bottle upside down planter. I followed their directions to a T, not a t, but a T; their plants looked great, but mine oh the poor dears. Now the other plants seem to be thriving; the one that is planted upside down, the last one done that way and the ones planted right side up. Time will tell. I love gardening, I'm just not all that versed on the subject and I adore tomatoes, I say adore because well I adore tomatoes. Scrumptious, hmmm. Happy gardening. Its just me giving ya a hollah from Kentucky.
PS: I will try not to be so talkative next time, I just get carried away, those who know me know I love to talk. (sorry):angel:
 
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Hi kykuzins, welcome to DC.

Sorry to hear about your tomatoes in the soda bottles - I've never tried that technique. Sounds interesting.

You probably could have started your own thread on this topic.

Lee
 
Sometimes there is something when I was in the military, working in electronics, we used to call FM. the latter word being magic. Sometimes there just is not an explanation. Last year both a bay tree and a rosemary plant just up and died. Now I have to tell you, both were over a decade old and had been babied; not too much water, lived in the kitchen or bathroom in a sunny window during the winters. They were so darned healthy that my neighbors all knew that if they needed a bay leaf or some rosemary, they came to my house to get them. Then, all of a sudden, under circumstances they both thrived on for years (and yes, I'd repotted them several times), they just up and died on me. It amazed me because the rosemary had actually lived in the trailer with us! I now have a new rosemary and a new bay tree. But these plants were at least 6 years old, they were not root-bound (after I gave up the ghost I did a post-mortem. I think the bay had some kind of bugs, but even so, I'd washed the leaves in previous years with good results. So sometimes you just do not know.
 
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