2ft Sky Pencil Holly bare branches - eww?!

7 years ago

how do i stop leaf loss, and regrow? Not sure which aspect of "too much love" did it.

pic 1 and 2 show the leaf loss. it gets allll day sun 9am- 7pm. 3rd pic shows the other Sky Pencil- not as affected; it gets afternoon shade.

They've been in 10 gallon containers since May 2019, planted in MG Potting Soil, w perlite and a little Soil Conditioner (peat), and Compost. Based on the new green and fullness, they were flourishing! ...until late July/Aug.

thanks!

Featured Answer

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5

7 years ago

are you sure its just not an intermediate stage during the growing season???

do you see any indication.. of where next years buds will be.. and if that new growth.. might not hide it all??? ... im sure you could cut it back to force new buds.. but then i suspect.. the plant will get wider.. kinda defeating the purpose of a tall thin plant ...

im leery of fixing.. what might not be a problem ..

may i ask.. why isnt it in the ground???

interesting media mix .. but i dont see anything so out of whack that it would cause this ...

thats a lot of sun on a black pot ... can you put anything in front of it.. just to hide the pot from direct sun ... maybe you are overheating the roots on one side ... there appears to be a shrub on the opposite side ....

i have the perfect solution .. since its potted.. lol ... turn it around.. so you dont have to look at it ... lol ...

ken

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Comments (8)

1818 Federal (7bEC)
Original Author
7 years ago
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><md>@ ken- I'm ROFL as i type!
1) turned it around this am.
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1818 Federal (7bEC)
Original Author
7 years ago
not sure what happemed to my (long) answers. will try again in a while.
Dave in NoVA • N. Virginia • zone 7A
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
I'd put them in the ground. Looks like a moisture issue to me. Either too wet or too dry, or too wet and then too dry. LOL! Much easier in the ground.
mblan13
7 years ago
Too much water retention in the pot? Compost breaks down too fast/fine and impedes drainage. It's not recommended for pots. Adding peat is not necessary as MG is about 75% peat. I'd skip those two ingredients next time and just use a bit of liquid fertilizer or constant release granules.
1818 Federal (7bEC)
Original Author
7 years ago
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><md>@ken and others - sorry for delay. In response to the Sky Pencils in the 10 gallon tree containers:
1) intermediate stage - no experience w these. hope so! Nursery Landscaper came by this week: wasn't fazed on the thinning "they do that; you just got to get it out", and complimented the new growth.

2) New growth hiding- new growth is higher. thinning is near the base.

3) wider would be great- id love a 2' wide SkyP.

4) not in the ground - just immediate height gratification. potting in the tree container gives me a 2' start. (thinking about mt 4' heels, and Spanx
1818 Federal (7bEC)
Original Author
7 years ago
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><md>where is the rest of my comment?
1818 Federal (7bEC)
Original Author
7 years ago
todays pics