This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.
Osmanthus Burkwoodii distressed
paulsturgess
Posts: 9
In May I planted 9 Osmanthus Burkwoodii plants to create a hedge along a fence line. 4 Look absolutely fine, but unfortunately the rest are now looking quite distressed! The leaves have gone yellow and in some cases are half green, half yellow.
I'm hoping someone can tell me what's up with them.
They're in full sun and I've watered them all the same. Obviously we've had a very long run of dry weather! I'm not sure if they've been under-watered or perhaps even over-watered. Or if simply the leaves have been scorched by the sun.
Are they likely to recover? Should I cut them back?
Any thoughts/advice greatly appreciated!
Mostly yellow:
Half green, half yellow:
Absolutely fine:
I'm hoping someone can tell me what's up with them.
They're in full sun and I've watered them all the same. Obviously we've had a very long run of dry weather! I'm not sure if they've been under-watered or perhaps even over-watered. Or if simply the leaves have been scorched by the sun.
Are they likely to recover? Should I cut them back?
Any thoughts/advice greatly appreciated!
Mostly yellow:
Half green, half yellow:
Absolutely fine:
0
Posts
Leave the burnt bits for now, and as growth improves again, it will help protect it if you're going to get more high temps. Really deep watering at the base and a bark mulch will really help.
You have a lot of bare ground there. Have you any plants [annuals or similar] that you could pop into the gaps for now - that will help protect them a litle bit too.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Also I must admit on doing my research before buying these, I had thought these were ok in full sun and planted them there specifically for that spot. So I'm a bit surprised if it is scorch from the sun. Is the leaf burn common or just exceptional for this summer?
The weather right now will be tough for many established shrubs, so new shrubs will need watering from deep down the root area in the late evenings to get the best of the watering. Little and often style of watering is even more damaging to the plant's establishment. The roots will not be trained to go downwards and in times of excess heat, they will dry out even more.
Although these plants are tough when established, in high sun, the younger shrubs will need good mulching to keep the temperatures stable. The bare soil in this heat is not ideal. Look into covering that soil with either other plants as suggested or get bark chip to smother the soil once watered in.
I think they'll be fine, if you can get them through this spell that many people are having, and they'll grow on well once established. Younger, smaller plants are always a bit vulnerable, but the abnormal weather has made it very tricky, even for experienced gardeners.
They'll breathe a sigh of relief when autumn arrives ...
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I'm giving them a good soak each day, is that too much or should I not worry about that?
Watering midday in summer not only runs the risk of splashing your leaves and then causing scorching to leaves, but you are not utilising water well. Water rapidly evaporates in the high heat. Once temperatures dip below 24 degrees, you can slow down the watering to every 4 days.