Wilting Thimbleweed

Question: My thimbleweed (Anenome Virgininiana sp?) is wilting. I notice one leave and thought it might have just gotten broken since it's next to a small path so I cut it off. But now I see more. It shows up at the top and I think dies all the way down in spots. There's no signs of bugs. I have a fair amount of it and most is fine, but I'd hate to see something bad spread to the rest. I looked up issues with this plant and couldn't find any really as it seems pretty hearty. What is it and what should I do about it?

Thanks

M

responder: Answered by the Home and Garden Information Center (HGIC), University of Maryland Extension. For timely gardening information and tips, subscribe to our Maryland Grows blog and quarterly newsletter. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. Replied June 15, 2023, 4:07 PM EDT
response: A likely cause, if not stem breakage or injury due to stem-boring insects, is a type of crown, stem, or root rot. (The crown is where stems emerge from the ground and root system.) Granted, our weather has been quite dry to the point of widespread drought, but are you watering this area regularly (or at all?) where the soil might be staying damp? With rising temperatures, we are also entering the time of year when crown-infecting fungal diseases can outbreak. Southern Blight is one example that manifests in summer, especially if plants are over-mulched, crowded, or otherwise remaining more damp with poor air circulation.  Since fungicides will not cure or completely prevent these infections, all you can do is to remove the affected portions of the plant and dispose of them. Make sure mulch, if used, is kept a few inches away from the plant crowns and inspect the site of stem collapse for indications of spore nodules, as in the photo on linked page for Southern Blight. If found, you may want to scoop-out some of the soil where the dieback occurred so it's less likely to spread.  Miri

responder: The Question Asker Replied June 15, 2023, 4:49 PM EDT
response: Thank you for the reply. I haven't been watering at all. I plant natives so that's not so necessary (except when first planted, and this plant is years old). It's not overcrowded I don't believe. We pulled up the full plant with the drooping leaves. It's dry as a bone beneath it. I don't think there's signs of Southern Blight. I have that in my front yard from several years ago and this is well away from that in the back. There was very very, just a tiny amount of  white and not where the stems meet the ground, but deeper into the root ball.  Looking around, some of the other thimbleweeds had their flowers drooping if not their leaves like the ones I sent a picture of. Given how incredibly dry the ground is where we pulled out the plant, I decided to try watering it. Not sure that's the right answer, but it seemed worth a try. Michaela

responder: Answered by the Home and Garden Information Center (HGIC), University of Maryland Extension. For timely gardening information and tips, subscribe to our Maryland Grows blog and quarterly newsletter. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. Replied June 15, 2023, 5:37 PM EDT
response: Irrigation is sometimes necessary to save a native plant during drought, even if established; drought tolerance only goes so far, and if weakened too much by moisture stress they may not survive either a secondary and usually-minor issue (like an infection or pest attack that wouldn't necessarily be serious on its own) or might not survive the winter due to a reduced root system from dieback, as it needs time to regrow. It sounds like drought alone might have been responsible for this plant's damage given how dry it was beneath the root mass, and we have seen several other question submissions recently with a variety of plants (including natives) suffering damage due to insufficient soil moisture. It's good that you watered, since that will hopefully eliminate the problem or at least reduce its impacts. (Leaves too far gone cannot rehydrate and may still show damage, so they can be cut off.)  Miri