Zooba, To get this ball rolling, we're going to need answers to our standard questions: What, if any construction or other soil-disturbing activities went on in proximity to these plants? What, if any lawncare or other chemicals have been applied in the area? What, if any other pertinent factoids should we be aware of ? Any unusual weather occurrences? Where in the world is this? That sort of thing.

What suggests "honey fungus" to you? That set of words usually means Armillaria, a virulent pathogen of a wide range of woody plants, so yes, would be possible. But it's hardly the first idea I'd reach for in privet. Then again, I'm not sure what I would think of first! Probably have to crack open my big Johnson and Lyons, the bible of diseases in woody plants......a very fat book!

Hello wisconsitom – Thank you for your response. Here are some additional details… I’m
located in Zone 7, Long Island NY. This
privet hedge is approximately 2.5 years old and had been healthy (at least in
appearance) in the beginning of the Spring.
They were purchased from a very good nursery and I believe they were in burlap
as opposed to pots but I’m not certain anymore as I had both. I trim them on a regular basis and I believe that
I have trimmed the hedge twice this year.
This property had been neglected for many years and this entire area had
been dead trees, brush, and invasive vines like English Ivy and other species
whose names escape me. I cleared the
property approximately three years ago and planted a perimeter of various
shrubs …I have several sections of Privet around the property. This particular section looked very healthy
and full, I have been keeping it low and trimming in a pear shaped formation to
make certain the bottom gets sun and stays green. The soil is very fertile, it has excellent
drainage and gets a good amount of sun each day. Our spring has been pretty good, I usually
supplement water if there is any dry spells.
There is no grass within 10 feet of this hedge … I have put down both a
pre-emergent and broadleaf control, but not in close proximity. I use arborists wood chips as mulch, but I
have not recently mulched this area – this is where I get concerned about the
Honey Fungus. The thinning of the
leaves was very sudden and I’m concerned whatever is causing it might spread …
Any thoughts or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you

Well for starters, great rundown! Wish everybody was as thorough, not only in explaining, but in researching and knowing whereof they speak!

So the bad news is, I can't find one thing wrong with anything you've done so far. The herbicides concerned me just a bit but it does sound like you used good caution with those.

For now, I'm going to leave it there in hopes that someone with greater privet knowledge than my own-I used to have a privet hedge too in the way-back days-comes along with suggestions. Then if all else fails, there's always plant disease diagnostics labs. Sometimes that's all you've got. I tend to doubt Armillaria (honey mushroom fungus) although I can't quite put my finger on why, except to say, we should be seeing the characteristic fruiting bodies at some point if that was the case. Nor have i ever heard of it affecting privet, although it is known to have a wide host range.

I'll post my progress for anyone else who might encounter this. After a closer examination of the shrub, I believe I've identified the issue. It appears to be a fungus: Cercospora Leaf Spot of Ligustrum ... I'm planning on trying to treat it and if it begins to spread, I'll probably be chopping out some shrubs and replacing. Thanks

How is your hedge doing? I would love to see some updates please

Hi Roxana - It's winter now, so the hedge is bare, but last year I had other areas of the hedge that experienced leaf drop. I spoke with Cornell and they suspected Alternaria leaf spot - I will update this thread once the hedge blooms to give an update. If I forget, please comment and that will job my memory. Thank you

I just adopted 3 wax leaf privets and one is not doing so well—has lost a lot of leaves—and there are some brown spots on some of the leaves on the other two. Any advise on what herbaside/fungiside to use? I thought to remove the spotted leaves but wait to do a big pruning in early fall, when it's not so hot and the growing season is over. Any advise would be helpful. I admit I'm a novice gardener.

Hello Resa,

My hedge experiences leaf drop from time to time - I don't have a good explanation as to why it occurs. It's not consistent and the Privet usually recovers during the same year or during the next bloom. One thing I did this year when I noticed some leaf drop was prune some nearby Schip Laurel that was shading that portion of the hedge.

If you believe it's a fungus - you might want to try Neem Oil

Good Luck

I am in Southern California and I too had a healthy mature privet hedges. All the sudden, leaf drop, some dark spots, started from the bottom and worked it way up. I took roots to an ag lab and it can back fusarium, a fungus infection which spreads. I have tried , all types of fungus remedies. According to all my research it is not curable, can take 5-10 years to run its course taking more privets with it. I have replaced many but just recently removed about 20, spent way too much money and time dealing with it. I replaced mine with plumbago, very resistant to this fungus.
I now use an another fungus that is healthy in a drench method to help my healthy plants fight it.