L
13

My basil went from lush to yellow in just 5 days last month

I checked on my balcony garden one morning and noticed the leaves on my Genovese basil were turning pale. By day 3, half the plant was yellow and dropping off, which freaked me out since it was growing fine for 3 weeks before. Turns out I was overwatering because the pot had no drainage layer (rookie mistake, I know) and the roots started rotting. I drilled 6 holes in the bottom and let it dry out for 2 days, now it's bouncing back but lost about 70% of the harvest. Has anyone else had a near-total basil collapse from bad drainage?
2 comments

Log in to join the discussion

Log In
2 Comments
robinson.quinn
Yellowing from overwatering is brutal, but drilling holes is usually the right fix. Just a heads up though, @ivan522 might be interested to hear that mint is actually way more forgiving with wet feet than basil is. Basil likes to dry out almost completely between waterings, while mint can handle some sogginess for a bit longer. Also if your pot's material matters too, like plastic holds moisture way longer than terracotta. Hope your next batch bounces back stronger.
6
ivan522
ivan52211d ago
Oh man, I drowned my mint so bad last year it looked like it was crying for help.
3