Why did my African Dwarf marigold plants dry up after only half a month?

Question

Recently I started a marigold plantation farm. At first the plants were healthy and had good flowers, but after half a month, the plants dried up one by one.

Observation: when I observe, I see that the most bottom leaves start to dry and turn to a dark black colour first, and then slowly the problem goes higher towards the upper portion. Meanwhile the plant blooms but the flower is a reduced size.

Is there any option to get relief from this symptom? If yes, please kindly provide me with the fertilizer or whatever it may be. It's urgent.

Answer 1

Where are you located? What is your watering schedule like? Do you have your soil mulched? Photos would help as well!

My suspicion is that they are exposed to a lot of heat. Yes, marigolds like sunlight in general, but if they experience a lot of heat and water loss, they start dying out.

If you live in a place where temperatures are high and significant water loss can be experienced, then you will need to, among other things:

1. Consider providing some shade, through shade cloths and/or other means. You could locate the plants where the exposure is reduced, or plant trees, etc. Too much shade can also stunt growth, so a bit of experimentation might be needed for optimization.

2. Use drip irrigation and make sure you water them so that the water reaches the roots. Once established, marigolds only need moderate watering, but, if you live in a hot place, they may be losing water.

3. Mulch the soil well. Cover it up with tree bark, or similar materials so that water loss is prevented.

4. Marigolds like to flower. Less is good in terms of fertilizers. That the bottom leaves are turning black first may be indicative of too much fertilizer. If you have a means of doing soil tests, at least measure the pH of the soil and let us know what you find.

5. It is also possible that there is a fungus attacking the marigolds. This is where a picture, some information about your local weather conditions, etc., is helpful. Please share as much information as you can with us, so others and I can provide refined answers.