When a plant is still wilted after watering well, there might be several causes of this problem. We’ll list them here and you can decide what might be making your plant wilt.
1) Is the watering REALLY the same between this and other plants? If you’re relying on an automatic sprinkler system and assuming that it’s delivering the same amount of water to all the plants because the soil looks damp on the top, that might be the problem. Dig down near each plant and see if the soil is truly soaked down at least 10 inches. Sometimes automatic systems soak one area but only dampen the surface near the other plants. Double check. If you are hand-watering, or using a sprinkler, is it possible that this plant is in more sunshine so although the watering is adequate for the other plants it isn’t enough for this one? Again, dig down 10″ and check to see how moist the soil really is.
2) Although we associate wilting with being dry, plants also wilt because they are TOO wet. If this plant is in an area that retains more moisture or is wetter for other reasons (leaky irrigation system for example) the roots might be rotting. Rotting roots don’t allow the foliage to get the moisture they need so the plant wilts even when the plant is constantly wet.
3) Stem disease or damage. If the stem has been damaged by a string trimmer, an animal eating the bark, or a disease such as canker, the water won’t be taken up into the twigs and leaves. Look carefully from the ground up at the main trunk for damage or sunken tissues.
If the roots have rotted, or the stem damaged there isn’t a good cure. If the plant is really thirsty you might be able to bring it back to health by a deep soaking every five to seven days.
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