- Winter damage is often the reason for a lack of budding
- You can do that
- Damage caused by moths & co. - does the box tree still have a chance?
If the boxwood looks dried up in the spring and doesn't want to sprout, you don't have to tear it out right away. With a vigorous pruning and proper care, such a dead-looking specimen often has a chance.
Boxwood can suffer severe damage on days that are too frosty and sunny
Winter damage is often the reason for a lack of budding
Dried shoots and brown leaves are not always a sign of pest or fungal infestation. Boxwood can suffer severe drought damage, especially after a rather dry, perhaps even frosty, winter. It practically dries up during the frost period because its roots in the frozen ground can no longer absorb water. If there is also bright sunshine, the misfortune is perfect: The sun in turn increases evaporation through the leaves, while no more moisture comes from below - as a result, leaves and shoots turn brown. In spring, winter damage is also reflected in a lack of budding: the weakened plant simply has no more capacity for fresh shoots.
You can do that
The roots of the boxwood have probably been attacked and the plant is already so damaged that it is dying. Still, you can try to save them:
- Provide the boxwood with a slow-acting fertilizer.
- Organic fertilizer such as compost enriched with horn shavings (€32.93) works best.
- Alternatively, you can also use a special boxwood fertilizer.
- Mulching is also useful to keep the moisture in the soil, which is important for regeneration.
- Cut the box vigorously back into the healthy wood.
- You should do this cut as early as possible in the year.
- The best time for a heavy pruning is between March and April.
- Also ensure a balanced supply of water.
Damage caused by moths & co. - does the box tree still have a chance?
If the box has been severely weakened by fungal diseases or a massive pest infestation, cut it back vigorously. If the infestation occurred in May or June, even a bare plant has a good chance of recovering. A later infestation from around August or even September is equivalent to a death sentence - the bare shrub will probably not survive the winter and will not sprout again in spring.
tips
Do not prune a box that has already weakened after the end of July, because the new shoots that appear afterwards would not survive a cold winter and would freeze back.