goji plant died suddenly

I’ve had my plants in the ground for about 3 months now, second year plants from seed. Every once in a while one of the plants quickly dies overnight. Looks like the attached picture. Not sure where I’m going wrong with this, it’s such a quick death it’s hard to reverse it. Thanks

Hi Ryan, I moved your post here to start a new thread.

My goji bushes twnd to drop the leaves when it's too hot and dry summer but come back when it cools down. But in this case, it happens gradually with lower leaves yellowing and falling off first. It's probably quite different in your plant as the whole plant died overnight. Have you checked to see if there's any damage around the crown or in the root zone?

Hey May, thanks for the response. Part of me is wondering if I am suffering from some sort of rot. I’ve had it happen to 3 other plants, and when I dig them up there tends to be shoots coming off the roots below the ground but the main rootball appears a bit rotten as well as the crown. Im just having a hard time addressing the issue because they are dying so quickly. I had mulch around the bases of the plant which I think might be contributing to some damage from bugs which I have now moved away as a precaution. I am maybe watering once a month currently even though we are in a 110+ Fahrenheit heatwave. I’m having a hard time striking a balance between keeping the soil moist enough and not too wet. The main problem being is there is a list of possible factors causing this, I’m just not sure how to narrow it down. Any help removing some of those factors would be much appreciated!

Goji likes soil on the alkaline side. Maybe spreading some wood ash around the remaining plants will make them happier. Nevertheless, the goji in your picture was quite big for a second year bush from seed. It seemed to be bearing fruits too. Too bad it died for unknown reasons..

That ecosystem looks super-arid to me. Once a month watering seems inadequate.

I recommend one inch of water per week for the first two years they grow in their permanent location. (Or a five gallon bucket per plant every week of the growing season.)

I’m in the Sacramento valley of California which might explain the large plants because of such a long growing season. I’ve been nervous to water much more than that as the plants keeping dying even though the soil is moist. I’m starting to pinpoint the problem to crown rot, I think I may have planted a few of the plants a bit deep and I put mulch around the base of them which allowed bugs to get at the crown. I’ve removed the mulch now so only time will tell which ones make it. I’ve got 50 plants and 5 down so far. Looks like another 5 got eaten completely around the base but the plants are still alive. Doesn’t sound like they will make it much longer without their bark/cambium layer though.

How are your goji berries doing? I learned it the hard way to get moisture consistent for goji. Goji grows best in moist sandy alkaline soil and when my hard clay soil dried to a brick, the roots have problems getting enough moisture and the plant gets stressed quickly. My plants started dropping leaves after a dry spell, almost turned bare in late July. I watered deep and mulch around the base. I also pruned and fertilized with chicken manure then keep an close eye on soil moisture.  The bushes spring back and they are loaded with berries now.