Root rot

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Root rot" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (August 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Root rot is a condition in which anoxic conditions in the soil or potting media around the roots of a plant cause them to rot. This occurs due to excessive standing water around the roots.^[1] It is found in both indoor and outdoor plants, although it is more common in indoor plants due to overwatering, heavy potting media, or containers with poor drainage. The leaves of plants experiencing root rot often yellow and die, and if allowed to continue, the condition can be fatal.

To avoid root rot, it is best to only water plants when the soil becomes dry, and to put the plant in a well-drained pot. Using a dense potting media such as one dug up from outdoors can also cause root rot. Plants from different environments have different tolerances for soil moisture: plants evolved for desert conditions will experience root rot at lower moisture levels than plants evolved for tropical conditions. In both indoor and outdoor plants, it can be lethal and there is no effective treatment, though some plants can be propagated so they will not be lost completely.

Many cases of root rot are caused by members of the

Hydroponics

Root rot can occur in

• Armillaria causes Armillaria root rot or white rot root disease
• Phellinius noxius^[2]
• Rhododendron root rot
• Shoestring root rot
• Texas root rot
• Rosellinia necatrix aka Dematophora necatrix
• Scytinostroma galactinum aka Corticium galactinum
• Phytophthora – see Phytophthora cinnamomi for discussion on treatment
• Basidiomycete fungi are wide-spread saprophytes and afflicts Acacia plants with root rot.^[3]
• Ganoderma spp. ^[3]
• Phytophthora cinnamomi^[4]

See also

• Pythium
• Rhizoctonia
• Plant pathology
• Damping off – root rot in seedlings

References

• Shurtleff, Malcolm C. (1962) How to Control Plant Diseases in Home and Garden Iowa State University Press, Ames, Iowa, p. 73;
• Yepsen, Roger B. Jr. (1976) Organic plant protection: a comprehensive reference on controlling insects and diseases in the garden, orchard and yard without using chemicals Rodale Press, Emmaus, PA, pp. 194, 208, 212–213, 226, 247, 260, 295, 321, 333, 337, 469, 488, 577, and 629,
  ISBN 0-87857-110-8
  ;
• Ellis, Barbara W. and Bradley, Fern Marshall (eds.) (1992) The Organic gardener's handbook of natural insect and disease control: a complete problem-solving guide to keeping your garden & yard healthy without chemicals Rodale Press, Emmaus, PA, p. 401,
  ISBN 0-87596-124-X
  ;