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All gardeners can attest that they’ve experienced failure with plants. You found that perfect plant, brought it home and planted and cared for it, but from day one it began to die. You’ll repeat the story in your mind over and over to try and figure out where you went wrong. You may ask yourself, “Was there something wrong with the plant? Was there something I missed when reading the tag? Did I not give it enough water or care?”

Unfortunately, plants don’t have a voice, but we’ll chime in and give you the ten reasons (many of them overlooked reasons) why plants die:

1. Incorrect Planting – This is by far the most common reason why plants die. Usually it’s because the root ball is buried too high or low, but sometimes silly mistakes like driving stakes through the taproot ultimately leads to plant murder. We recommend the root ball be 1″ above the grade of the soil.
2. Too Much/Little Water – You might think the next obvious culprit is the amount of water you gave your plant; you’re right! The plant is usually immature and in a state of shock when it is ripped out of its pot and planted in the ground, so it needs some extra water for a few weeks to get through this tough time. Make sure the soil stays damp, but don’t let water pool or let the soil get dried out. If there’s a pool of water then water less, and if the soil is dry an inch deep then water more.
3. Wrong Soil – Some plants like soil that is more sandy and drains fast, while others prefer more clay-like soil. In order to compensate for plants’ issues with your property’s native soil  just add the soil it prefers; dig a larger hole than the plant needs and back-fill the hole with soil and amendment the plant prefers, such as sand, clay, or rich loam. This method will help the plant get started with a soil it’s comfortable with, then acclimate itself to your property’s native soil once it has matured.
4. Wrong Climate – Take a deep breath and accept that house plants won’t survive outside. We’ve seen many people plant house plants outside and come to us confused and ask us why they died. Sun plants belong in the sun, shade plants belong in the shade, and house plants belong indoors; there’s nothing you can do to change that. You might think your favorite shade plant would look so beautiful in your entry courtyard with full sun, but we guarantee that in a week it will look like it was baked in an oven. Read the tags on your plants, talk to nursery professionals, and work with a landscape architect on plant choices and placement. and you’re plants will look stunning.
5. Over-Fertilizing – Most plants will not tolerate fast acting fertilizers around their roots. Instead, provide an organic slow release fertilizer around the plant’s drip line. If you take it any farther than this you will murder your plant.
6. Wrong Season to Plant – Here in Southern California there really is no wrong season to plant. Do take heed of extreme weather conditions; don’t plant or transplant during times of extreme heat or frost. The best time to avoid this is near the end of winter or early spring, and then again in late summer or early fall.
7. Lack of Protection – Another element, wind, is often forgotten, but harsh winds can tear some plants to shreds.  Transplanted plants in particular do not appreciate windy gusts so make sure that they’re protected.
8. Pests – This one can be hard to control. Pests come in many forms, such as slugs, snails, rabbits, birds, squirrels, gophers, and the list goes on and on. Talk with a pest control professional about how to deal with some of these issues.
9. Sick when you bought them – On very rare occasions it’s just not your fault. We wouldn’t recommend defaulting to this option, but sometimes plants get diseases and fungi and it can happen before you even brought them home.
10. Transplant Shock – Sometimes plants just don’t deal well with change. Once they’re transplanted in their new home, they may panic and just die from the shock of it all.

Things die and it’s part of life. We hope this information helps you to prevent this from happening in the future. There is hope! Take any plant death as a learning experience and grow from it.