Crispy cleyera

[bluefish]

I have two 7yo Cleyera Bronze Beautys in front of my house.  With the exception of a few green leaves, the rest of the bush has gone brown and crispy    These have never been high maintenance bushes, so I'm kind of at a loss.  I live in Zone 6b although we did have an exceptionally cold winter.

Any thoughts?

[nomad100]

I know lots of the bushes and shrubs in out area got winter burn due to the severe cold weather.

Can you scrape some of the wood in the crispy area with your fingernail so see if it is actually green/alive underneath? If it is green, you should be OK and it should bounce back. If it is dry and dead, you may need to assess how bad the dead parts are and trim it all back (if possible). If that isn't an option because of the severity, you may need to dig up and replace.

[pitterwoo]

I wasn't familiar with this and when I googled it says hardy to 0 degrees. It may have gotten too cold for it this winter. Check for green like nomad said.

[bluefish]

Apr 24, 2014 15:21:20 GMT -5 nomad100 said:

I know lots of the bushes and shrubs in out area got winter burn due to the severe cold weather.

Can you scrape some of the wood in the crispy area with your fingernail so see if it is actually green/alive underneath? If it is green, you should be OK and it should bounce back. If it is dry and dead, you may need to assess how bad the dead parts are and trim it all back (if possible). If that isn't an option because of the severity, you may need to dig up and replace.

So, I did the scratch test, and it's green! I am still concerned about the massive defoliation, mainly for the health of my bushes, but I'd also like my front garden to look nice.

[nomad100]

bluefish If it is green, good news! It will regrow leaves and TBH this summer may look a bit bedraggled while they are regrowing. Not much you can do about that. Just know that your neighbors are probably dealing with similar issues.

[treedimensional]

I agree with nomad. Although they may be fugly for awhile, they will recover in time. I've had many service calls about broadleaf evergreens that were damaged this winter.

[nomad100]

treedimensional Our neighbor across the street has a big rhododendron that looks awful right now. You can tell what part was protected by the snow (the leaves look green and healthy) and the leaves that were exposed are brownish and sad looking. Gave him the same advice as I gave to bluefish when he was out with the loppers last weekend. It passed the "scratch test" with green underneath so I was able to persuade him to leave it alone.

I have to give props to my dad who gave me this same advice years ago (he is the one with the really green thumb in our family).

[candreco]

Apr 25, 2014 7:07:39 GMT -5 nomad100 said:

treedimensional Our neighbor across the street has a big rhododendron that looks awful right now. You can tell what part was protected by the snow (the leaves look green and healthy) and the leaves that were exposed are brownish and sad looking. Gave him the same advice as I gave to bluefish when he was out with the loppers last weekend. It passed the "scratch test" with green underneath so I was able to persuade him to leave it alone.

I have to give props to my dad who gave me this same advice years ago (he is the one with the really green thumb in our family).

I need to do the same with the rhododendron in our yard, thanks for the tip above!  It's got leaves around the base, but the exposed part is looking pretty rough.  I'm thinking that at least some of it is dead and it going to have to be pruned back.  Same with the hydrangeas.  My whole neighborhood is looking a little ragged from this winter.

[demandypants]

My hydrangeas seemed to weather the winter just fine- but we put in a new rhododendron in the fall and I am 90% sure it is dead. I scratched a few places without any hope for regrowth. However, on the bright side I did have about 8 tulips spared from the deer buffet that are currently blooming!