Hebe bushes
Tilly 3
Posts: 1
I had two beautiful Hebe bushes planted in pots - one at either side of my front door. Through last summer and winter one began to die in patches. Starting at the buds/tips it began to turn brown and turn brittle and die. I cut out the dead patches and it seemed to improve but this then continued until in despair I cut the entire bush hard back but it never recovered. The second one was fine right up until recently. parts of it are green and healthy and in bud other parts have again turned brown, dry and died. It is well fed and watered and has been treated with nematodes for vine weevil beetle. Last year the one appeared to be home to a large number of small brown moths although this doesn't seem to be the case with this one and there appears to be no obvious culprits. Help.
Posts
Hebe's can do this Tilly for no apparent reason, fickle plants as far as I'm concerned and not something I grow. I come cross a lot of it in different gardens, die back for no obvious reason, some come back after hard pruning, others just give up the ghost despite ideal growing conditions. I'd plant something else.
Excess water was my thought too Verd. Perhaps a bit waterlogged in the pot? Check that the drainage holes aren't blocked. I had one in a pot at the front door of a previous house. In the lee of the wall so never got any of the winter wet we have here, and I never really looked at it. Survived well on neglect. I have three Vernicosas in large terracotta pots just now. They get a feed when I remember - which is basically once a year if they're lucky- and rarely watered. Looking great just now.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I feel that Hebe's, after a bountiful period of flowering give up the ghost and have to be scrapped. Just not a plant for life.
Just to change the OP a bit, but just how much can you safely prune them, I have some very big ones that need cutting back?
If they get too big and straggly they don't always come back too well after a brutal haircut, Lyn. The bigger the leaf size, the less tough they are usually. Best to do it in stages and see what happens. I've hacked back Red Edge successfully in a previous garden though, with no ill effect.
Curmudgeon - they need to be trimmed lightly after flowering to keep them at their best. Not too big a hardship unless you have thousands!
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Thank you FG, I have some lovely new ones that someone sent me from this site, if my old one die back, I have the lovely new ones.