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Posted 1w ago by @mushroomprince

Rosemary on the brink of death

So my friend gifted me a rosemary plant from Home Depot or something and it looked good at the time but I was away for two weeks and left it and it started dying I tried so hard to save it but I had to cut it down and take off it’s leaves. I even repotted it into a bigger pot from six inches to twelve and gave it new soil. No signs of improvement. It’s so dry
1ft to light, indirect
12” pot with drainage
Last watered 5 days ago
Hi - they don’t need too much water as they’re a woody herb. I would actually put it back in a smaller pot so you have more control over how wet it is. If you’re worried that it’s dead, slowly start snipping off one of the branches. If the inner core of the stem is still green, it’s alive! (It’ll be a really light neon green.) if it’s brown, keep cutting down as that part is dead.
Is the root system still intact? It will likely be able to grow new leaves again if the roots are still alive. If the roots are alive but the stems are completely dead (no green on the inside,) you can trim the stems and leave a little bit above the dirt, and you might get some growth from there.
But if it has no living roots but the stems are still alive, you could try cutting the sticks and using rooting hormone powder to encourage new root growth.

Plants are surprisingly resilient, as long as some part of it is still intact, usually theres some way to regrow the plant :)

For regrowing the rest of the plant when roots are still intact: https://luisnursery.com/how-to-decide-if-your-plant-is-a-lost-cause-or-can-be-revived/

For regrowing roots from the stick, this article about how to root twigs might help: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/trees/tgen/planting-trees-from-twigs.htm#:~:text=A%20great%2C%20inexpensive%20way%20to,start%20roots%20on%20branch%20cuttings.
@cereal the roots are attached but idk if they’re alive
@RealSimpleMama I trimmed it down a lot but I can’t tell if it’s actually a tiny bit green or if I’m fooling myself
@RealSimpleMama is that green or am I crazy
@mushroomprince Ok good! Then unless they are like super brittle, they are very very likely still alive. To check if the stems are also alive, you can try what @RealSimpleMama said and snip into one to check if it’s green, and if it is, you could leave it as it is and wait for new growth to appear. (though it may take some time, but if it is still living, there’s still a good chance!)
@mushroomprince Yes it is! Hoorayy
@cereal OMG REALLY??
@mushroomprince Yes! As long as you keep taking care of the plant, there’s a good chance itll regrow its leaves and recover :)) Best of luck to you and your rosemary!!
@cereal thank you so much!! One last question. Should I trim the rest of the stems down to where I see green?
@mushroomprince yes! Alive!
@mushroomprince that’s up to you! The dead wont grow anymore leaves or anything. I personally would.
@mushroomprince Some of the articles im reading say its a good idea, but i think as long as all the dead parts are off it should be fine to leave it alone, it might be harder on the plant to regrow its entire stalk again rather than put out more leaves. So i think you should leave it as is, and only trim everything as a last resort 👍
@RealSimpleMama Thats true thats true. Either way itll find a way to grow back, so its up to Eliot yes!