Bacterial leaf spot?

[RhiannonMay]

I have 2 basil plants growing in a large container outside. (Also growing parsley and bell peppers) recently I've started to notice brown streaks on the stems as well as brown spots on my leaves. After a little research, I am guessing my basil has bacterial leaf spot. It has been VERY rainy the last few weeks , including a hurricane last week. The soil usually drains pretty well, there is a layer of rocks underneath the soil to help promote drainage. Until the weather clears up I cannot fix the wet soil problem. What can I do to save my basil plants?

[rainbowgardener]

it always helps to tell us where you are located. There are hardly any garden questions that can be discussed without regard to location/ climate.

I'm guessing you live somewhere where winter is coming... Basil typically gets pretty spotty and ragged at the end of the season. Yours also looks like it has woody stems, another sign of a senescent plant. Basil is an annual. It is genetically programmed to sprout, grow, bloom, set seed, and die all in one season. By clipping all the blooms off as (or before) they appear, we can prolong its life, longer than it would have been, but that doesn't mean it is going to last more seasons.

I have tried bringing basil in for the winter, but the results were not worth the trouble. If it were mine, I would pick and dry any remaining usable leaves and say goodbye to the plant.

Incidentally you mentioned a layer of rocks in the bottom of your container for drainage. People always used to put gravel in the bottom of containers "for drainage," but that was always a myth. It turns out if there is a sharp border in textures, like between potting soil and gravel, water will not cross the boundary until the soil is completely saturated. So you end up with a flower pot with dry gravel in the bottom with soggy potting soil sitting on top of it.

https://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/ ... 937778.htm

[pepperhead212]

My basil started getting spotty just from a few nights ago, when it got into the high 40s. As rainbow noted, this is normal, and this is why I get my indoor plants going back in Sept.