Camp, IME, Daphne odora can be hugely picky......or not at all :-) We know it can up and chuck it all after any number of years' growth for no apparent reason. But I have also seen a few that have seemed to wither away to almost no sign of life suddenly start to come back!!

I normally have little tolerance for this sort of behavior and would be inclined towards permanent removal if it were in the ground. But since yours is in a container, I'd be a bit more patient and just stuff it in a less visible corner and let it be for a couple of months. Depending on its size and current ranginess, I might also consider cutting it back moderately to stimulate any new growth that might be lurking.

Ken, D odora is evergreen. I'd stick it behind the shed and look at it again in a few months.

Exactly, Floral - the total lack of leafage pointed to death. It was a present from the sweetheart...which is why it is still in a pot and not stuck, willy-nilly, in the ground somewhere. I thought (mistakenly) it would be better if it was under my daily care at home rather than neglected in the wood or allotment. Clearly, I was having some sort of brain fart because my 'daily care' tends to over-enthusiasm or total neglect with not much in between...and in this case, I think total neglect might have been the better option.

It does have an enormous and rather lovely, green glazed pot which can be reclaimed so silver linings.

What is its history in that container? How long has it been in the container, have you ever repotted it, etc.? Can you upload a picture showing plant, container, and soil mix?

I'd stick it behind the shed and look at it again in a few months.

==>> i have had a lot of luck with benign neglect ... lol .. ken

Camp is a very experienced gardener and well versed in growing things in containers........I doubt the container situation presents any significant issues :-))

Well that takes care of that, fortunately :)

Robin White (below) thinks most cases of "daphne sudden death syndrome" are caused by Botrytis cinerea. Otherwise they are also prone to water molds.

http://www.timberpress.com/books/daphnes/white/9780881927528

I did wonder about the soil and container - it had been chugging along nicely since repotting it (only did that once when transferring from nursery stock)...and I was very careful about drainage. Think I am actually going to upend the whole thing and take a good look at the roots - it certainly isn't going to make things worse. Yep, Embo, I have killed a daphne before by watering in summer and I have a horrible feeling that the drainage holes didn't perform because I forgot to lift the container on raised feet (shoulda put it in the ground - my sandy alkaline soil is usually a safe berth for picky plants like daphnes - I have a completely neglected bholua under a gigantic tree paeony and plum tree, which vanishes into the undergrowth all summer, only appearing around Xmas when the majority of leaves have dropped...and that does well with zero input from me.

Ah, thanks for the puff GG...but unfortunately, I all too often come across the yawning gap between theory (which I basically know) and practice(where I fail because I am scatterbrained and idle).