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Dead branches in middle of shrub

shazza 3shazza 3 Posts: 197
in Problem solving
Hello. My Continus has produced new leaves but for some reason the middle of it has died. I've taken pictures to show. The majority of the shrub is fine as you can see so I'm not sure what's happening with the rest of it. There's new growth at the very bottom of it. Any advice please, thanks

Posts

  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,385
    Unfortunately, Cotinus are prone to this sort of dieback.  All you can do is prune out the dead wood, always cutting back into healthy wood below, just above a healthy side shoot.  If there is no live wood, remove the dead branch completely, cutting flush with a main branch or the trunk.  Don't leave any dead stubs like those you can see in the last-but-one photo as they are entry points for disease and will accelerate the problem.
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • shazza 3shazza 3 Posts: 197
    ok thanks. i will chop it back later this week after the rain has stopped.
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