Transplanted 1 year ago by a non-Rhody person... it has
some green drooping leaves and a lot of yellow/brown leaves.
It lost some root mass durring the transplant.
I'm concerned that the current rootmass cant support
the dense 30 year old rhody that's roughly 5 feets tall,
doe that sound right?

Shall I prune it back so the roots have less to support?
If so, can someone please make some basic suggestions
on how to prune them please! I'm a rose guy, I don't
know these things and I want to save it, it was my parents.

Thanks in advance!
-Brendan

what is your temperature? my rhodies are dropping cause it is cold outside.
however, I use "cloud cover" an antidessicant to help prevent water loss. last year I
forgot to use it and this spring one of mine was almost dead. the prettiest one of
course. but it is coming around.
rhodies are very shallow rooted. if it did well in the last year, then a light
pruning is all that is needed. continue to water until the ground is really frozen.
and mulch it cause dont want freeze thaw cycles hitting those roots. Ingrid

(Brendan OMara) wrote:

Transplanted 1 year ago by a non-Rhody person... it has
some green drooping leaves and a lot of yellow/brown leaves.
It lost some root mass durring the transplant.
I'm concerned that the current rootmass cant support
the dense 30 year old rhody that's roughly 5 feets tall,
doe that sound right?

Shall I prune it back so the roots have less to support?
If so, can someone please make some basic suggestions
on how to prune them please! I'm a rose guy, I don't
know these things and I want to save it, it was my parents.

Thanks in advance!
-Brendan



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
List Manager: Puregold Goldfish List
http://puregold.aquaria.net/
www.drsolo.com
Solve the problem, dont waste energy finding who's to blame
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Unfortunately, I receive no money, gifts, discounts or other
compensation for all the damn work I do, nor for any of the
endorsements or recommendations I make.

In article ,
(Brendan OMara) wrote:

Transplanted 1 year ago by a non-Rhody person... it has
some green drooping leaves and a lot of yellow/brown leaves.
It lost some root mass durring the transplant.
I'm concerned that the current rootmass cant support
the dense 30 year old rhody that's roughly 5 feets tall,
doe that sound right?

Shall I prune it back so the roots have less to support?
If so, can someone please make some basic suggestions
on how to prune them please! I'm a rose guy, I don't
know these things and I want to save it, it was my parents.

Thanks in advance!
-Brendan

Many evergreen rhodies drop their leaves in two-year cycles. If it
produced less foliage after the move you may be seeing normal shedding but
with fewer newer leaves to maintain the evergreen look. Newly
transplanted rhodies are more susceptible to summer sun-damage which can
result in yellowing & leaf-loss the following winter when added winter
wind-desication rips through the limbs. A degree of increased loss of the
evergreen leaves the year of any disruption or stress doesn't usually mean
they're dying. If it can be pruned without injuring its appearance I
might try that, but rhodies tend to transplant very well & bounce back
even from root damage without needing to have their woody structure
compromised. Real threats are drying out before roots are re-settled; or
poor drainage or too much watering while the roots are bruised & sensitive
to fungus or insect attack.

I'm of the belief that use of beneficial fungus tablets under the roots at
time of transplant assists woody shrubs, as does dilute vitamin B. A
healthy measure of beneficial fungus ought to help keep harmful fungus
from appearing. The fungus tablets can be inserted around the edges of the
root system with a dibble even after the fact.

Shallow roots may be more susceptible to frost burn after disruption &
bruising, so a topcoating mulch of well-composted manure (not of woodchips
or straw which could encourage insects) could well be of help.

I installed several new species rhodies within the last year & some that
are allegedly evergreen look semi-deciduous right now in December. I worry
about them but probably do so needlessly, as past worries about new shrubs
almost always turned out to be unnecessary as the shrubs turn out to be
fine. I did lose (later replaced) a first-year-planted Stewartstown
azalea. Rarely can one be totally sure why something fails once in a great
while but there's always a pretty good guess one can make, & for the
Stewartstown azalea I rather assume the sharp draining soil at a
cliff-edge caused it to dry out once too often during its first year in
the ground, &amp also it had been severely pot-bound & that can result in
a shrub having trouble sorting out its roots for the best possible water
use. I replaced it with a better-formed Stewartsown anyway, but worked in
tons more compost over a larger area to make the soil has good moisture
retention, & give closer attention to be certain it doesn't get too dry, &
placed it a couple feet further forward from the cliff. But being a worry
wart, I've considered the possibility that it was actually a fungus got
it, in which case planting the same variety close to the same spot, the
fungus could get it again! Worrying is part of what gardening's about .

-paghat the ratgirl

--
"Of what are you afraid, my child?" inquired the kindly teacher.
"Oh, sir! The flowers, they are wild," replied the timid creature.
-from Peter Newell's "Wild Flowers"
See the Garden of Paghat the Ratgirl: http://www.paghat.com/