Problem With My Chocolate Mint

[kwazarr]

Okay...so I'm a bit of a newb when it comes to herb gardening and I'm having a problem that maybe all you experienced gardeners here can help me with.

I bought a chocolate mint plant about a month ago and planted it in a 6" deep glazed pot on my balcony. It sits facing east in a breezy spot where it gets a bit of direct sun first thing in the morning (up til about noon) and spends the rest of the day in a relatively bright shade. I tend to water it whenever the top layer of soil is dry.

So here's the problem...I'm noticing that a lot of the leaves on the bottom halves of the stalks are turning yellow and eventually brown before falling off. Normally this wouldn't make me think something's wrong, but it seems to be happening pretty quickly and persistently. Some of the green leaves are getting turning brown at the tips too. The brownness isn't blotchy or spotty, there doesn't seem to be any pustules on the stalks (like I've read can happen with rust), and with the exception of the odd tiny (2-3mm) white cylindrical insects on the odd leaf, there doesn't seem to be a significant bug problem (could be wrong though). Finally, the affected leaves seem dryer and more rigid than the moister/softer unaffected leaves, but they are really wilted.

Does anyone have any ideas of what could be going on?

Thanks so much in advance!

Ross.

[CharlieBear]

First thing that comes to mind is that the pot is too small. Remember mints grow quickly and can easily over run a 6" deep pot. I have my mint in a 12" deep pot. There is a very good chance that the plant is root bound already.

[Runningtrails]

I second that. I put a tiny, tiny choc mint plant in my herb garden this year. It's taken over like the blob from outer space!