I am having a terrible problem with my Petunias. They are withering up and dying. It just makes me sick after all the hard work and expense that I have gone to.
If you can help me, it would be very much appreciated.
Thank you very much.

You'll have to give us a bit more info' as where did you plant them, in what type of soil, did you fertilize them.... those types of questions.

Petunias are usually very hardy plants, and will survive the harshest winds, believe me I've proven it with mine. So if you can give us just a little more I'm sure someone can help you before its too late.

Shamous

Petunias.....Odd , mine are doing great in a hanging basket.. One is cascade and the other regulars.......Part sun on the porch.. I water them daily.........Feed once a month ..miracle grow.......

tell us how you did yours..

dodge

my experience ...the base of da stems were eaten by very tiny yellow snails...dunno if u have these creatures in your garden... they r so vey tiny...

I am also having a problem with my petunias flowering.
1-I dont see any pests
2-The foliage is growing great
3-I have others that are doing great, but this section is not.
4- Getting enough sun/water

Please help!

How often are you fertilizing?

I have the miracle grow Plant booster that I started with, and then just a few weeks ago I sprinkled it with the miracle grow granules that say they last 3 months.

Could it be overwatering? I made that mistake years ago......Ever since then I've never had a problem with them. Are you pulling off the dead flowers????? Maybe they are trying to go to seed????

What kind of soil are they in? For example one of my flowerbeds has really clayish, hard soil....most flowers never grow well in this spot. Or are they in potting soil? Some of the cheaper brands are terrible, like cement. Like the $1 bags from Walmart and the Dollar Stores.....

I am not overwatering, they are being watered the same amount on each sides (I have them on either side of the walkway) and one side is growing. This is the side that usually does the best (the other gets shaded from a big tree) The soil is well drained, and the geraniums that are in there as well are doing great! Seems to be very tempermental this year. I did dead head the spent blooms that came when I planted them. Maybe I shouldn't have??

Hmmm, I'm not really sure then Mandy....pulling the spent blooms is a good thing though, lets the plant put it's energy into the rest of it, and stops them from going to seed.

I have always had such luck with petunias, last year mine were the talk of the neighborhood. This year however they looked awful to the point that I cut them all back. We have had some nasty nasty storms and winds here then when I had to go on vacation for 3 days the gal paid to water din do a very good job of it. The only ones looking bad were my hanging basket the ones in the ground look great. The nursery here said they had to cut all theirs back due to the storms too.. hail straight line winds and heavy rain. They just took too much of a beating. The cut back ones are now growing and starting to fill out nicely. I have some double petunias out front they were protected from the weather they are beautiful. I have to pick mine in the baskets to get them to continually bloom but in the good ol ground they just are really maintence free and the wave petunias make such a beautiful display in front of bushes and such. They are costly though

Hi all! My friend is haveing an awful time with her petunias as well. She has them in planters in the western sun, waters them plenty but not too much as they are in the pot with other plants that are doing fine. I believe she also gives them miracle grow liquid fertilizer. They last about two weeks then wilt and die within a few days. She pulls them out and the roots are intact and appear healthy but the shoots are hollow. She has a pretty decent knowledge of horticulture but is absolutely stumped. Any help would be appreciated!

well, thanks for all the help, I will just watch and wait! Daisy, good luck to your friend.

Hey Shamous,

Whenever you check back for answers to your question please know that many of us can sympathize with your problem. We can grow the difficult to grow plants but can't grow the easy plants. However, there are some possibilities you may have overlooked with your petunias. First, many of our fabulous forum pals religiously discuss and promote that "the secret is in the soil." It is. Be double certain that you haven't planted this plant in previously used potting soil. Sometimes we do this when we don't want to go buy new potting soil and we inherit a previous plants problems, bugs, viruses, etc. You may need to replant in better quality soil. As stated above, discount soil isn't saving you anything and costs us in problems later. Next, sometimes my wife and I accidently duplicate the others efforts. I water, and she waters later. I fertilize, she fertilizes later. Spray for pests, she sprays later. You get the idea. Usually our problem is too much water. The other problem is the soil looks wet on top but isn't soaked through to the bottom. Sometimes drainage is so good it goes right on past the roots and out the bottom without the plant absorbing anything much. The next thing is too much fertilizer, I like the Miracle Grow products but have learned to prefer the organic methods of compost tea, horticultural molasses and earthworm castings. I get much better results and improve everything as it goes, or grows. So, soil, water, fertilizer. Bugs and other pests probably aren't it but maybe, check closely and use glasses if you need to but don't like to admit it like I do. You may have gnats in the soil. Perhaps slugs are crawling up into the basket at night time and crawl out before dawn. Be sure to pull off the dead leaves as soon as they are done looking pretty so they don't set seed and will continue to produce blooms. Other than that, we sometimes have to accept the fact that there are some plants that are healthier than others and you may have bought a dud. Genetics are a factor. Where did the seed come from? Could be from the seed of a hybrid that leaves new seeds of crappy quality. Surely and hopefully this will help you to discover the real problem(s) and solve them. Sometimes it's just easier to compost the darn thing and buy another one. But then we wouldn't learn anything would we? Good luck!
Terry in Texas

Wow, that certainly gives us somethings to look into. I will print this out and give it to my friend. Thanks for you help!