Poorly Phlox

Story so far - I purchased this plant about 5 yrs ago from a reputable ebay seller who also has a separate website. A professional, in other words. Anyway, on arrival in spring it was very small and all the leaves were badly spotted with brown patches. I messaged the seller and asked if I should remove the worst ones. He professed complete surprise about the condition and said these must have developed in transit. Hmmmm. I let it go, on the basis making a living selling plants is tough enough.

Now, since then it has never looked great, TBF, but it flowered pretty well from the 2nd yr onwards. This yr though it is looking really sickly and there are no flower buds yet. Checking my records, I note it would normally open its first flower around now.

So, looking at the pics, is it a gonna? Or should I remove the dead and dying leaves and see if it perks up now or comes out healthy next yr?

 

Looking at the RHS information @ViewAhead, the symptoms could indicate eelworm which lingers in the plant. Others may know more.

How to grow border phlox / RHS Gardening

 

Could be ... though the growth is not so much stunted as just sickly. When I got it, I did wash all the existing compost off the roots, in case anything lurking there was causing the brown spots. It may just be it was not a strong plant to start with and has just about managed till now, but has given up the battle.

 

I have lots of perennial phlox in my garden and they usually perform well.
But some of mine also seem to suffer from the same problem as yours - but it doesn't happen to the same plants each year.
The conclusion I've drawn is that they're not happy in the environment they're in - but that may not be the right conclusion.
A possible lack of water may be part of the reason.

 

Ah, relieved to hear mine are not the only ones, and that a sickly specimen may recover the next yr.

We've had such wet weather here I'm not sure lack of water can be the whole issue. I wonder whether they thrive long-term in containers? I've always thought of them as an in-the-ground plant.