My holly bush looks dead, and I have no idea why. I was gone for 3 weeks and came back to find it brown and dried up. Now, the bush next to it seems to be dying too. Any ideas on what happened or how to save the second bush?
Is that by where a truck would park and do work? I used to work for a carpet cleaning company and we had to watch where we parked our exhaust would roast bushes.
Jordy said:
Is that by where a truck would park and do work? I used to work for a carpet cleaning company and we had to watch where we parked our exhaust would roast bushes.
No, in the yard by the house. Not near the driveway or by vehicles.
@Cleo
I will check for this, thank you!
@Cleo
I suspect this as well (something stripping the bark), but could also be rabbits. It would explain why the damage is limited to one bush within the hedge.
This is what I do for a living. It’s hard to tell without being able to see better pictures or up close. Are there black stains on the leaves, branches, or ground underneath it? Are the leaves all spiked or smooth (spiked on holly means it thinks it’s being attacked, rounded means otherwise)? Are there little white spots on any parts of it? Are there roots exposed? If any of those are true look into zylam. I am a licensed professional so tbh I’m not sure whether or not you need to be licensed to procure it, but you need MAYBE .5 of an oz for that much surface area, you can do a root soak, which is exactly how it sounds, or a lite spray of the leaves and bark. Otherwise it could be a lack of nutrients, iron, manganese, basic stuff like that to repair the root structure. If not the bugs, which is what I was suggesting first, then I’d take out the bush, it’s spreading over to the left bush as well. See the “hole” or less foliage there in the bottom left? That’s it spreading.
I see this a lot and most people aren’t interested in fixing the problem, they just replace, it tends to be cheaper, but if it’s an insect infestation, like scale, then most all other plants in the area are screwed too unless you treat. From what I can tell, I would absolutely go in and chop down the dead parts. It may not look the best, but it’s in your best interest to. If you find any clues hit me back I’ll try and respond.
Last little edit, are there any leaves in the midst of turning from green to yellow? Are they doing so in spots? Like yellow spots starting in the middle of each leaf?
If you don’t have black mulch underneath those bushes then that’s what scale looks like and that’s what the issue is. Zylam and a fungicide should help.
@Florian
Thanks for this info. I will take a picture or video and upload tomorrow.
@Florian
Also, these bushes have had sharp leaves since we moved in 3 years ago. I was told they are always like this. I have another bush that has “dead spots” (brown leaves).
Vehicle, Roundup runoff, blight, fungus that ran its course…
Rylan said:
Vehicle, Roundup runoff, blight, fungus that ran its course…
I’m thinking maybe blight or fungus? It’s in the yard not near vehicle parking or anything like that. If it’s blight or fungus, how can it treat all of the bushes? What would I use?
Check and see if there’s a white substance on the bark… then check all of them. Could be spider mites.
Hartley said:
Check and see if there’s a white substance on the bark… then check all of them. Could be spider mites.
I will look for this.
Do you have dogs that roam the neighborhood? They could be pissing on it. If one dog does, more will to cover the previous scent.
Torrance said:
Do you have dogs that roam the neighborhood? They could be pissing on it. If one dog does, more will to cover the previous scent.
I don’t. I checked my security and nothing was in the yard.
Looks like volutella, but I’m not sure that hollies get that. Have you tried sending a photo to your local extension?
Fox said:
Looks like volutella, but I’m not sure that hollies get that. Have you tried sending a photo to your local extension?
I will call them on Monday. Now that I’m thinking about it, my Texas sage and crepe myrtle were struggling this summer. I was thinking it was the heat but I may have something else going on. I hope I can save the rest of my plants.
Sometimes the most random thing can kill your plants. I pour copper sulfate down my house drain pipes every year to keep it clear of tree roots. It’s not supposed to permanently kill any trees or shrubs but I had a shrub that was in the path of the underground sewer lines go brown and die one time.
There is a moth that has become an invasive pest in many areas and growing.