I have a Delphinium that I planted (large container) three months ago, and it's been a huge, thriving plant with lots of blooms till this week. Suddenly, practically overnight, it looks like it's dying: leaves all wilting and brown. I don't see any visible bugs on it, and it's had plenty of water and sunlight. Any suggestions?
Delphinium Suddenly Looks Distressed - Wilting & Brown
It could be too much water, or some kind of fungus attacking the roots.
It could also be that it has run its cycle, but in that case they usually don,t change overnight, but gradually. So it must be some type of stress.
The pot drains freely, and the soil doesn't feel waterlogged. It sure looks stressed, but I can't figure out why. Delphiniums are usually pretty hardy around here, aren't they??
Actually I don't grow Delphinium but i had one very large and strong Sunflower do the same thing about two weeks ago, suddenly it started to wilt, and developed a dark mushy area on the stem.
I pulled it out and got rid of it, assuming it was disease.
I wish I could help you more, but that is my best guess.
Josephine.
I've had the same thing with melampodiums and coreopsis. They'll look fine and suddenly wilted and dead. I'm pretty sure it's fungal. All the rain we've had seems to reinforce that suspicion. Josephine, I wonder if the milk spray would work on coreopsis as well as roses? I'm gonna' try it and see what happens. It can't possibly hurt.
No it couldn't hurt, so it is worth a try.
Hmmm. Delphiniums are my favorite flower in the world. I just love them, so I buy at least one every year. But, like another of my favorites (Crysal Palace lobelia), in Texas, I have to think of them as cooler-weather annuals. (Cool being relative, of course.) They are beautiful until mid-June when it starts getting hot. Then they turn brown and die. I have never yet had one grow past the end of June in Texas. Nor have I ever had one return.
We grew them in Maryland, where they lasted all summer and behaved as perennials should. I just kind of assumed the problem here is the heat. Do some of you have better luck?