bradzial
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Joined: Fri Sep 16, 2005 8:53 pm

Hebe help please! Brown Leaves.

Help! I am new to gardening, and I have a row of beautiful Hebe shrubs (Hebe 'Great Orme'). One of the shrubs looks like it's dying. One half of the plant has leaves that are very dark brown to black. The other half still has green leaves, and I can see one small bud trying to form, but the leaves are starting to show brown on the tips.

All my other shrubs are beautiful and have produced tons of flowers. This shrub is getting as much water and sun/shade as all the others, yet it seems to be failing. Is there something I can do to save it?

Thanks for your help!
~bradzial

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Location: Amherst, MA USDA Zone 5a

bump.

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Location: Summerville, GA, Zone 7a

I know nothing about Hebe shrubs, but can ask a few questions anyway.

Is the shrub holding on to its leaves even after they are dead? Are there any spots, or mildew or fungus growing on the leaves? Does the dirt around that shrub smell any different than the dirt around other shrubs? (this is an old trick an old gardening pro taught me - take a handful of the dirt in your hands and smell it. My gardening friend could tell you what was ailing the soil fairly accurately by the smell! I'm not that talented, I can just notice a different odor and run a soil test.) Do you see any pests, or signs of pests?

According to this site:
https://www.ibiblio.org/pfaf/cgi-bin/arr_html?Hebe+'Great+Orme'&CAN=LATIND
they are hardy and can be pruned back to the old wood.

I didn't find a site that listed what common diseases or pests Hebe is prone to, other than leaf spot, apparently caused by Septoria sp., and downy mildew, caused by Peronospora sp.

Hope that helps a little - Hebe is a beautiful plant now that I know what it is! Wish it could grow in my zone since it's a pretty evergreen. :)

The Helpful Gardener
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Location: Colchester, CT

Need more info on the locale as this is a very sensitive shrub and if you are too far north...

Scott



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