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Is this plant dead?

QasQas Posts: 29
in Problem solving
Hi fellow gardeners,
I am fairly new to gardening and last year trimmed this beautiful flower plant that was left by the previous owner.  The whole of last year till now it has not flowered again, just leaving me with barren wood branch.  I scraped some of the bark off to see if it was still alive and saw a bit of green which makes me hopeful. I also cut off a branch to see how it is from the cross section and it looks fine. Nothing dead to me.  So my question: is there still hope? What can i do to help it?I took pictures to show.  Second pic is the barren wood and first pic is a cut off piece to show the cross section 

Posts

  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,445
    If it had no leaves last year it's dead
    If it had leaves but no flowers last year it's probably alive


    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • QasQas Posts: 29
    Thanks for the feedback.  It has had nothing and been like in the second picture :( wonder where i went wrong with the pruning?
  • Kitty 2Kitty 2 Posts: 5,150
    Is it a forsythia?  I can't tell if the stems showing new growth and one tiny yellow flower are coming from the stump or behind it.
  • LynLyn Posts: 23,190
    I wasn’t sure if the Forsythia was behind the trunk or joined to it.
    Gardening on the wild, windy west side of Dartmoor. 

  • QasQas Posts: 29
    No no, that yellow plant is different...on the left its 'bigger brother'here another picture from side and i cleaned it the ground around it a bit...
  • BorderlineBorderline Posts: 4,700
    Do you remember the colour of flowers? I'm wondering if it's a Californian Lilac shrub. Some Ceanothus shrubs do not respond well at all to being cut down so severely.
  • Kitty 2Kitty 2 Posts: 5,150
    Ah, I can see it now. The forsythia is growing up behind it. I thought the stump trunk was a bit too smooth, which was confusing.

    Do you know what the stump is/was? 
  • QasQas Posts: 29
    Hey Kitty - unfortunately i dont know what the stump was.
    Hey borderline - it used to be dark green leaves with beautiful white flowers..doing some google  search i think it might have been a Rhododendrons maybe...sigh..miss the beautiful flowers...
  • hogweedhogweed Posts: 4,053
    I think you haven't as much 'trimmed' as cut down! If it didn't grow any leaves last year as Nut said, it's a goner. Dig out and dispose.
    'Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement' - Helen Keller
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