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Shrubs not budding #752629
Asked May 27, 2021, 7:40 PM EDT
Jefferson County Colorado
Expert Response
Dear Charles,
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YOUR QUESTION #0022560:
Shrubs not budding
I have 3 shrubs that I am not sure if they survived the winter and recent cool spring. Two shrubs were purchased and planted last May and June. These were Allegheny Viburnum and Burkwood Viburnum. The limbs seem to be flexible, but haven’t seen any buds appearing. How can I tell if there will be any growth with these shrubs? Since I didn’t these last season I am not sure what to expect. I have a Blue Chiffon Rose of Sharon that was planted July 2018, and did fine last last spring. So, what can you tell me about this situation? I also have other shrubs (Snowball bush and Mockorange) in the general vicinity that have leafed out. The Mock organge has some leafs, but does not seem to be very full. This was planted May 2016. The folks at O’Tooles Garden center suggested I use organic Neptune Harvest fish & seaweed fertilizer once a week for 4 weeks. Tomorrow will be week number 2.Ask Extension offers one-to-one expert answers from Cooperative Extension/University staff and volunteers within participating Land-Grant institutions across the United States.
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Hello Charles,
Thank you for your question and for your patience in waiting for a response.
Many shrubs have shown winter dieback this year after the sudden freeze last September, when plants had not yet hardened off for winter. Right now we are prescribing the watch and wait strategy to give them a few extra weeks to bud out. At that point, you can prune back dead wood to the closest live growth.
The Rose of Sharon typically leaf out very late, so give them some extra time.
I don't recommend fertilizing until the shrubs are fully leafed out, as it can add more stress to the tree. See 'When to Fertilize' below.
References
- Frost and Freeze https://planttalk.colostate.edu/topics/miscellaneous/2048-frost-freeze/
- When to Fertilize https://planttalk.colostate.edu/topics/trees-shrubs-vines/1720-when-to-fertilize/
- Fertilizing Trees and Shrubs https://planttalk.colostate.edu/topics/trees-shrubs-vines/1708-fertilizing-trees-shrubs/
- Pruning shrubs https://planttalk.colostate.edu/topics/trees-shrubs-vines/1713-pruning-shrubs/
Best regards,
Mari
Hello -
Because of our long cool, moist spring many plants and shrubs are somewhat delayed in budding out. That being said, the two viburnum and the Rose of Sharon (assuming those are the tree pictures at the top) do appear to be severely stressed and perhaps dead. However it is worth waiting until mid summer to see if there is any life in any of them. All three of these shrubs are suitable for zones 5-8. We are mostly zone 5a or 5b here on the front range. Since we had temperatures a bit below normal this winter it is possible that these plants were too young to survive. Be sure to mulch all of your shrubs and trees generously in the fall - fallen leaves work great and provide decent protection for shrubs.
I noticed in your pictures that your shrubs are all planted in small areas in your lawn. Your pretty bluegrass lawn is likely competing with the shrubs for water, and this might also affect their health. It may help to make those areas larger - doubling or even tripling the diameter of the circles. Keep in mind that anything you are putting on the grass, such as fertilizer and herbicides are also affecting these plants. Expanding the area the shrubs have to grow in will help prevent this from happening. The bark that you are using as mulch is great under these shrubs.
I hope this helps - please let us know if you have further questions.
Colorado Master Gardener Annette
