I learned a trick a while back that has saved me from removing plants that aren’t dead but look like they are. If you scrape a branch with your fingernail and it shows green, it’s not dead.

Looks like common privet, Ligustrum vulgare. Not dead but not worth trying to save, either. It is a weedy species and is considered invasive in many parts of the country including much of the northeast.

@gardengal48 I like the privacy the provide from our busy street. Any other hedges you can recommend that grow to around 5-6 ft that also stay green in the winter.

Thanks for your feedback

Yes, it’s privet. The finger nail trick is not foolproof since green can remain for some time after a branch is dead. I prefer to examine buds to see if they are desiccated and to bend a twig. Dead twigs generally snap. Live ones bend.

There is definitely snapping in the branches and no green 😕

It’s not attractive and it’s high maintenance since you need to trim it annually and also pull all the weeds that sprout up next to it. I’d remove it all and Invest in something pretty to complement your renovations.🙂

True! That’s what my husband says too.