Why did my plant droop as soon as I planted it?
Transplant shock is a supply problem, not an illness — what to do in the first fortnight, and the three mistakes that turn a wobble into a death.
- Difficulty
- beginner
- Time
- 15 min
- Read
- 5 min
Short answer
The roots were disturbed and cannot yet supply the leaves. Water it in thoroughly so soil is in contact with the roots, shade it for a week or two, reduce the leaf area if a lot of root was lost, and then leave it alone. Do not feed it, do not move it again, and do not keep watering a plant that is already wet.
Nearly every plant droops after being moved, and most recover without help. The damage is done in the fortnight afterwards, by a gardener who interprets the droop as thirst or hunger and responds with water and fertiliser that the plant cannot use.
Step by step
- Understand what has actually happened.Fine feeding roots are microscopic and are destroyed by lifting and by handling a rootball. The leaves keep losing water through their pores at the same rate as before, and the supply has fallen. The plant wilts, and it recovers as it builds new roots — which takes days for a small plant and a season or more for a tree.
- Water it in thoroughly at planting, not lightly.A full watering can per shrub, poured slowly so it soaks in rather than running off. The purpose is as much to settle soil into contact with the roots as to supply water — air pockets around a rootball kill more new plants than drought does.
- Then water deeply and less often.A thorough soak twice a week beats a daily sprinkle, which keeps the surface wet and encourages roots to stay at the top. Check the soil before each watering rather than watering on a schedule.
- Shade it for a week or two.Some fleece, a propped-up piece of shade netting, a temporary screen or even a chair on the sunny side. Reducing the demand on the leaves is the most effective single measure and it costs nothing.
- Reduce the leaf area if a lot of root was lost.For a bare-root or lifted plant, or one that lost a lot of root, cutting back the top growth by up to a third rebalances supply and demand. For a container-grown plant with an intact rootball, no reduction is needed.
- Do not feed it.Damaged roots cannot take up fertiliser and concentrated feed on them scorches. Fresh compost around a new planting already carries what it needs. Wait at least a month, and feed only once new growth appears.
- Do not move it again.Every move restarts the process. Pick the position before planting rather than after, and give it a full season before deciding the position was wrong.
- Handle the specific cases correctly.A newly planted tree or shrub: mulch a clear circle, keep the collar visible, stake low and loosely only if it is exposed, and water through the first two summers. Bedding and vegetables: plant in the evening or on a dull day, water in, and expect them to lie flat overnight and stand up by morning. Houseplants after repotting: shade, no feed, and slightly less water than usual for a fortnight.
- Give it a realistic timescale.Bedding and small plants: days. Perennials: two to three weeks. Shrubs: a season. Trees: two to three years to be genuinely established, during which they need watering in dry spells even though they look settled.
- Know when it is not transplant shock.A plant that never firms up, wilts persistently and never grows has either been planted too deep, has an air pocket under the rootball, has been planted into waterlogged or bone-dry ground, or was pot-bound and had its circling roots left uncut.
Tips
- Plant in autumn where you can. Soil is warm, rain is coming, and the plant has months to root before it has to support a canopy in summer.
- Water the plant thoroughly in its pot an hour before planting. A dry rootball put into wet ground often stays dry, because water moves round it rather than into it.
- Do not add fertiliser to the planting hole. Mycorrhizal fungi at planting are worth using for trees, shrubs and roses; a handful of feed is not.
- Late evening planting, especially of bedding, gives the plant a whole night to settle before the sun is on it.
Common mistakes
- Watering more when a newly planted thing wilts — The roots may already be in saturated soil, and drowning produces the same wilt. Check before adding water.
- Feeding a new planting to give it a boost — It cannot use it and the salts damage the new roots it is trying to make.
- Planting a pot-bound plant without cutting the roots — Circling roots continue to circle and never grow out into the surrounding soil, so the plant behaves as if it is still in the pot.
- Staking a tree rigidly and high — Movement builds trunk strength. A low, loose stake for one or two seasons is right; a rigid stake left for years produces a weak tree.
Questions people ask
It has been three weeks and it is still wilting. What now?
Check the basics in order: is the collar at the right level, is there an air pocket under the rootball, is the ground waterlogged or bone dry, and were circling roots left uncut. Lift it and replant properly if any of those are wrong — better now than in a year.
Should I use a rooting or anti-shock product?
Seaweed-based tonics do no harm and the evidence for them is modest. Mycorrhizal fungi applied directly to the roots at planting have better evidence for trees, shrubs and roses. Neither substitutes for planting depth, watering and shade.
When is the best time to move an established plant?
When it is dormant — late autumn to early spring for deciduous plants, and early autumn or mid spring for evergreens. Moving anything in full leaf in summer means a much larger rootball and a great deal of watering.