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Posted: **Thu May 28, 2020 11:17 am**

Hi everyone,

Just looking for help regarding this plant. It has recently started to turn brown from the outside and I am completely lost at how to take care of it. Attaching a picture. Thank you very much for your help.

Posted: **Thu May 28, 2020 12:33 pm**

Welcome to the forum!

I am not knowledgeable about shrubs, but this looks like a conifer, so my first thought was — when did you put in the marble chip rock mulch? Did you wash.rinse it Off-site before putting it down?

I ask because when I built a rock garden (which unfortunately have since deteriorated ... but anyway) I used marble chips of varying sizes and marble and granite and sandstone rocks for the purpose of increasing the Soil pH just in that spot so the various rock garden plants that prefer higher pH, lime- and sandstone-based soil would be accommodated.

Conifers are opposite — they are acid-loving plants. The marble chips will initially dump a whole lot of lime, and also continue to leach small amounts of lime.

There may be other issues like mites or diseases, but a Stressed plant will be more susceptible to infestations and infections.

Posted: **Thu May 28, 2020 2:36 pm**

applestar wrote: ↑
Thu May 28, 2020 12:33 pm
Welcome to the forum!

I am not knowledgeable about shrubs, but this looks like a conifer, so my first thought was — when did you put in the marble chip rock mulch? Did you wash.rinse it Off-site before putting it down?

I ask because when I built a rock garden (which unfortunately have since deteriorated ... but anyway) I used marble chips of varying sizes and marble and granite and sandstone rocks for the purpose of increasing the Soil pH just in that spot so the various rock garden plants that prefer higher pH, lime- and sandstone-based soil would be accommodated.

Conifers are opposite — they are acid-loving plants. The marble chips will initially dump a whole lot of lime, and also continue to leach small amounts of lime.

There may be other issues like mites or diseases, but a Stressed plant will be more susceptible to infestations and infections.

That's a good point! I did not know that marble could affect the soil like that. However, these stones have been there for around 4-5 years already but the browning only started happening this spring. Is there anything I can do about this? Shrub fertilizer?

Posted: **Thu May 28, 2020 4:38 pm**

I'm not knowledgeable about shrubs, either. However, I'll express some thoughts.

I believe that it is a mugo pine variety.

It sure doesn't look well. Evergreens are supposed to be ... well, you get the idea. Unless it has an easily corrected mineral deficiency, fertilizer isn't likely to help. Certainly, "pushing" it to grow with nitrogen wouldn't work.

Steve

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