Kitchen Garden Forum

Hi,

My rosemary bush has started to go brown on some of the top few inches. Any ideas on what it is, and what to do?

Thanks.

Hi, I remember vaguely that Monty covered this on GW last week or the week before. He said to cut out all the brown, or you'll lose the whole thing. Also, I think he said it was due to the plant sitting in cold damp soil over the winter??? Does this seem like it could be the cause?

Sorry to be so vague! Hope you manage to save your plant! Maybe you could improve the drainage for the rosemary by adding some grit - if it's in a pot. Not sure what to do if it's in the ground though.....

good luck,
retropants

Mine died too this winter. It was fine until the snow we had in March. I then saw that Monty had lost his as well on GW and didn't feel so bad. However I believe if you have a bit of green on the tips of the leaves you can sink the plant in to a pot and cover with soil leaving only the green tips showing. Or as others suggested maybe just try to cut out all of the brown.

Tara

Mine has died back too...must be all the 'bad winter weather' we were forecast to have this year.

Don't forget that they are Mediterranean plants so obviously not happy with our long, cold and wet winters.

I grow mine in pots so that I can put them somewhere sheltered, but forgot to move them this year! I have similar problems with sage and bays and have given up trying to grow them in the garden, but keep them in pots and replace when (rather than if) they die.

When you have an opportunity strike some cuttings and keep spares in pots.
Allan

While we're on the subject of rosemary bushes...mine survived the winter fine, but now (last month or so) showing yellowing of the leaves, almost as if the leaves are covered with a fine yellow speckling. No sign of any creepie-crawlies, or mildew or any such like, am I right in thinking that it could be iron deficiency (on fat London clay soil) Your suggestions 'd be much appreciated.

Regards, Maryn

The things that gow well in my garden are the things that I've planted in the wrong place! My rosemary was one of them. I planted it some years ago in a narrow gravel bed between the wall of the house and the path. I never had any problems with it but it grew so well that it covered the path and a large part of the lawn,and I think the roots were doing bad things to the paving slabs. So I cut it all down a couple of weeks ago and am still working out where to plant a replacement.

I think that Zena's post confirmed what I was going to say. Rosemary does not like to have it's roots at all wet during the winter, that will kill it far more quickly than cold weather. Mine lives in a well-drained pot, but is not particularly sheltered and is fine. We are at about 700'.

glad someone mentioned rosemary,ive been meaning to ask this for a while.Mine was bought by my kids about 5 yrs ago and it was only a little plant,now the thing is about2 meters wide and is getting a bit out of hand,do i cut the thing right back or will that kill it?

this is me

Hi Maryn,your Rosemary sounds like it's hungry so give it a liquid feed of whatever you use generaly and it should perk up.Grock,if you cut a rosemary back hard into the older wood it will not shoot out again so it's best to do it little and often,being as it's already got big you could try cutting back a few branches and see how far back into the woody stems it will shoot from.

And take some cuttings......now!!

My Granny told me Rosemary thrives were the women is boss !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've got rosemary in a pot where it's been for the past 6 or 7 years, next to the barbecue so that we can massacre it for sprigs to chuck on and make a lovely pong on summer evenings. Think it does well because of the frequent pruning. Having said that, I also take cuttings which are dead easy, gave away about 40 last year. The main pot does live in a sheltered position against south facing wall in the winter, but it only gets watered in the summer months with water from the fish tank when I do a clean out. Some of my cuttings did succumb to the cold this winter however.

And parsley only grows if there is a Witch in the house