If your favorite shrub is looking brown and brittle, don't pull it out of the ground just yet.
In Idaho Falls, winter wind and summer heat can make even a healthy plant look like a lost cause. Before you head to the nursery, you need to know if the damage is permanent or just a temporary setback.
Testing for signs of life in our landscapes is simple. A quick "scratch and bend" test can tell you if there is still green tissue and moisture under the bark. If the roots are healthy, even a severely stressed shrub can often be revived with the right pruning and plant health care.
Here is how to tell if your shrub is dead and the pro tips you need to save a struggling plant before it’s too late.
Nope, this isn’t a new yoga move. Just a couple of quick ways to tell if your brown shrub still has some life left.
Choose a branch and scratch off a bit of the outer bark. Any sign of green lurking underneath? Yes? Yay, it’s alive!
No? Try another branch, closer to the roots. If you can’t reveal any green, sorry, it’s dead.
How to tell if your shrub is dead? Another technique is just as easy. Bend a few branches of your shrub to see if they’re flexible. If all you get are snapping noises as branches break off, your shrub is likely dead.
If your shrub is 20-25 years old, it’s likely at the end of its life. Unlike that ratty flannel shirt in your partner’s closet, shrubs don’t live forever. Time to let it go.
The good news? You can go shrub shopping! Lots of great shrubs will thrive in your Idaho Falls yard, from azaleas and spirea to holly, sumac, juniper and more.
If your shrubs are struggling, but not completely dead, you can give some older shrubs new life with pruning. How can I tell if this is worth the time and effort?
Look at the core of the shrub. If it’s more brown branches than green foliage, cutting it back will look pretty ugly. You want a leafy green shrub, not a mess of brown sticks.
Brown bushes won’t exactly get you invited to the neighborhood garden tour.
If your shrub is too woody in the middle, it probably won’t sprout new foliage there, no matter how many fingers you cross. Time to start over with a new shrub.
But rejuvenation pruning can help restore shrubs that are straggly and overgrown.
After rejuvenation pruning, a shrub regrows from its roots, with fresh foliage and blooms. Yay! You have to be tough, though.
Trim the shrub down to 6 to 10 inches above the ground using sturdy pruning shears. Healthy shrubs will respond by sending up new shoots.
Lots of factors can zap the health of your once-thriving shrubs, from insect damage to lack of fertilizer.
A good plant health care program is your shrub’s best friend, offering food and fixes for every pesky problem. Get your plant pride back with the best Idaho Falls plant health care services.
Your shrubs are the foundation of your beautiful landscaping, and a big investment. Plus, you love those leafy guys.
Plant Health Care Services can be added for our Idaho Falls customers who use our full-service lawn care program.
Choose an Idaho Falls professional lawn care service that bundles your yard’s most-needed treatments into one convenient, no-fuss plan.
You'll know your valuable shrubs are getting the nourishing nutrients they need to thrive, and treatment for the pesky insects that love to attack them.
Got a few minutes? That’s all you need to get started. Just fill out the form on this page, call us at (208) 656-9131 or read more about our services. Then you can kick back and relax in your healthy, thriving yard.
Image Source: Azalea