mich wrote in message
...
I had cause to take a Daphne of unknown age out of the garden two weeks
ago. It was meant to go back, but water main problems mean it cannot. I
quite literally plonked it on top of the garden and left it there.

Its been in the sun and its been rained on. It does have most of its
roots,
although they are bare ( no soil on them)

Leaves are looking sad but it could still be alive. How can I tell if its
slowly dying or struggling to live?

What would be my chances of getting it back to life it I put it in the
ground - and how would I best treat it to do that - cut the leaves off or
leave them?

Its 3ft high x 3ft spread in size right now.


Hi Mich,
It doesn't look too hopeful for your Daphne; you were a bit unkind to it.
If you're like me and don't give up easily on a plant, trim off any
obviously dead roots and plunge it in a bucket of water for 24 hours or so,
keeping it in a sheltered, shady place. This should plump up the roots
again .. if there's any hope left. Once it's had a good soak, scrape off a
small area of bark on the stem: if it's green, it's alive; if it's
brownish, it's dead or as good as.
If it's alive, pot it up carefully and keep the roots moist. Do what you
can to provide shelter from strong winds.
Do all the above with your fingers crossed. ))
There is no guarantee that you'll save it, but it's worth a try -
particularly with good plant that would be expensive to replace.
Good luck,
Spider