Trying indoor rosemary --) Brown brittle leave

12 years ago

I couldn't help it - I had to buy the adorable Trader Joe's rosemary tree at Christmas time.

It's just after New Year's now and the tree isn't looking so cute. Many of the leaves sport brown tips, or have gone totally brown and brittle. Small sections have died back. Some of the green growth is droopy at the tips instead of standing upright. There are still healthy sections, so I don't think all hope is gone. I would just like to keep it alive long enough to put it outside.

I keep it right next to a very bright southern exposure, slight under a shelf. It's rotated semi-frequently. I try not to overwater it, though I probably have recently (thinking it was thirsty). I usually measure it by whether the soil feels dry an inch down, but I could be confusing cool with damp. The plant looks rootbound--I can see them sticking out of the drainage holes--but it's unclear to me if this is desirable or not, and what to do if not (I hear rosemary doesn't like to move).

Any tips you all have on how to perk up the droopy branches, avoid brown leaves, and generally NOT kill my plant would be greatly appreciated!

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Comments (8)

flora_uk
12 years ago
You don't say where you live but if it is a zone where rosemary would grow outdoors I'd get it into the ground asap (after hardening off). As for rosemary not liking to be moved, that's news to me.

If that is impossible I'd put it into the coolest room in the house, even one that is only a few degrees above freezing, like a glazed porch. I'd give it as much light as possible but not directly in hot sunshine through glass. I would also try and keep the air around it humid. Either mist with water, stand on pebbles with water (but not IN water). Rosemary is not a tropical and can withstand cold in winter. I would not fiddle with it at all until it is able to go outside. i.e. don't repot or prune or fertilise or apply any weird concoctions. Just cool, light and humid. And hope.
Wolfey
Original Author
12 years ago
Unfortunately I live in an NYC apartment. I don't have a backyard or porch, and only haphazard access to a roof. The plant lives in the kitchen though, which can get pretty cool right near the big window. I suppose I could put it on the front stoop, but I'm afraid someone would take it...

I will try your suggestion about moving it a little further from the window and standing it on a tray with pebbles.

If I could get it outside, would it do better even though I have to leave it in the pot?

Thanks for your advice!
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Peat and an Aqua Globe could lead to overwatering. Peat doesn't dry out that fast and it also doesn't really give the roots space to breathe. I don't know a lot about azaleas but I was under the impression that they like acid, which peat should provide. So maybe try incorporating a goodish amount of perlite into your potting mix, for aeration. Or pine bark or something. That'll also help prevent against the peat turning into a clump of stuff that you can't ever re-wet. Also keep in mind that most commercial potting soil is almost entirely peat moss, so 2 parts peat to 1 part potting soil is basically pure peat, and very, very few things can be grown in that, in a container, for very long. Also, if you can't get the aquatic plant baskets, unglazed clay pots would probably be better than plastic, as they're somewhat permeable and allow for gas exchange/improve dry-down time and stuff. It's typically a good idea to let houseplants dry down before watering. Not necessarily completely dry, or to the point where the plant wilts, but if the soil's still moist to the first inch or so (just stick your finger in the dirt) it probably doesn't need watered.
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Yeah....see that's what I figured...don't all plants in the wild get wet? But then I know I've heard that before...that you shouldn't let certain plant leaves get wet...so are you saying that there really aren't any plants this would apply to? It would seem to make sense to me...that any plant should be able to get wet...and not just the soil part but the leaves as well. Unless maybe what it is is that...maybe depending on the environment in which you live, the air, humidity, temps etc. may not be such that any moisture on the leaves can easily and quickly dry out, much as it would for a particular plant's natural environment, and so maybe it's for this reason that if the plant is in a DIFFERENT environment, then getting the leaves wet could be detrimental because it will take longer for the moisture to dissipate from the leaves, which in turn could make them start to rot or something?
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Labattblueboy. I keep 3 rosemaries in pots and have been quite successful overwintering them indoors for many years. In fact, one is blooming quite nicely right now. I'm in upstate NY. You are right, a rosemary wants a cooler, yet bright, spot in the winter. Give it your brightest window. Are the rads under the windows? If so, you may be able to put something on top of the rads (think thick wooden cutting board) and then place the pots on the boards. But, your bathroom is sounding ideal. I've never had luck with a pebble tray filled with water for extra humidity. Remove the brown needles, not the branches. You may get new needle growth from the branches. Thyme sometimes does get a little shock from the changing seasons. It wants to go dormant for a bit. Don't water as much as you would in the summer. Remove the brown leaves, but not the branches. Give them both a little pep talk, let them know winter isn't forever and could they hold on a little longer. Best of luck.
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t-bird
12 years ago
My potted rosemary has withstood 10 degrees thus far (forgot to bring it in!), but it was down to 7 last night and I did fetch it in to the enclosed back porch which likely kept a some degrees above.

Luckily - it was covered with several inches of snow before the bitter cold hit, generally my plan was to bring it inside if the night time low was lower than 20/15....I hope it made it through the few days of supercold I forgot about it....

In your case, I'm not sure I would put too much effort into an ailing plant...you said there are some sections that still look healthy.

I would clip off any of the not healthy sections, and then follow the advice above. Rosemary survives overwinter in zones 6/7, so cool air might help.
rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7
12 years ago
Just to make you feel better, wolfey, you've described what usually happens to rosemary that is kept inside the average home. It simply doesn't like the lack of full sunlight, the low humidity, etc.

I'd actually avoid misting rosemary, as that can encourage fungus in all of that dense foliage.
t-bird
12 years ago
I was just reading somewhere that most rosemarys are hardy only to zone 8, some to 7.

Interesting - this same source had a rosemary "for a christmas tree" that was not of the culinary variety.....

Shoot don't have it with me but it was the Rickters' catalog....
t-bird
12 years ago
http://www.richters.com/Web_store/web_store.cgi?product=X5037-350&show=&prodclass=F018&cart_id=3082518.17583

pine rosemary - christmas tree - not suitable for culinary use.....not sure if this is the one you got or not, but maybe look into it further...
flora_uk
12 years ago
The rosemary in the Richter's catalogue is named as Rosmarinus angustifolia (sic) or pine scented rosemary. This is actually a variety of Rosemarinus officinalis, ie R officinalis var. angustifolius, and although possibly not recommended for eating due to its pungency it will not actually do you any harm.
wally_1936
12 years ago
I would take a lot of cuttings from that rosemary tree if there is any healthy branches left and try to start them as that tree is most likely dead.

Trying indoor rosemary --) Brown brittle leave

Comments (8)

flora_uk

Wolfey
Original Author

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Trying indoor rosemary --) Brown brittle leave

Comments (8)

flora_uk

WolfeyOriginal Author

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rhizo_1 (North AL) zone 7

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Wolfey
Original Author