Burning Bush brown leaves - Ask Extension
I have several burning bush plants that were planted last fall by a landscape company. They are all south facing full sun about 2 feet from a light ...
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Burning Bush brown leaves #342251
Asked July 12, 2016, 5:51 PM EDT
I have several burning bush plants that were planted last fall by a landscape company. They are all south facing full sun about 2 feet from a light colored painted cinderblock wall. One plant in the middle started looking dry recently and now within days a couple have many of their leaves with browning on the edges. Something is also eating leaves on a couple of other plants but I don't see any insects, webs, etc. They look a lot like when birds would eat my young pea plants in my garden. They get watered about 10 minutes by a drip system every day and are surrounded by a standard weed barrier fabric and wood mulch. The ground feels wet around the base of each plant.
What might be the problem or problems and how can I fix this?
Thanks.
David
What might be the problem or problems and how can I fix this?
Thanks.
David
Salt Lake County Utah
Expert Response
First, do not worry about the feeding on the leaves. Those little half circles are from a leaf cutting bee (a native pollinator) that uses leaf pieces for building her best cells.
The scorching (browning) on the leaves is abiotic. Meaning a water imbalance where the leaves are transpiring and loosing water faster than the roots can supply it. The reflection from the house and south facing aspect contribute to the problem.
Drip for 10 minutes every day is not a good watering regime for woody plants. They should be watered for about 1.5 hr once per week. Be sure to dig into the soil to check the watering rather than just the surface.
Also, make sure the drip emitters are around the root zone and not just at the base of the plant.
