Remember I recently posted a photo of my ailing Skimmia?
I just dug it up and found it had next to no root system. It was at least
four years old so it must have had roots once. What could have been eating
it? I couldn't find any trace of larvae or fungal threads.
R. :-(

On 07/05/2013 16:23, Ragnar wrote:
Remember I recently posted a photo of my ailing Skimmia?
I just dug it up and found it had next to no root system. It was at least
four years old so it must have had roots once. What could have been eating
it? I couldn't find any trace of larvae or fungal threads.
R. :-(


At a wild guess I'd say Vine weevil grubs have got at the roots

On 07/05/2013 16:23, Ragnar wrote:
Remember I recently posted a photo of my ailing Skimmia?
I just dug it up and found it had next to no root system. It was at least
four years old so it must have had roots once. What could have been eating
it? I couldn't find any trace of larvae or fungal threads.
R. :-(



I've only just subscribed to U.R.G. so didn't see your picture. I also
have an ailing Skimmia where the leaves are yellowing and I've kept it
watered and fed it with the correct fertiliser.

On writing the last sentence I thought I better check my facts. Yes...
the Skimmia likes a neutral to acid soil... however I think I've just
sorted out why the leaves are yellowing. The border where it is situated
is in full sun... and the RHS website states:

-----------
Cultivation
Grow on a good neutral to acid soil with added humus (from leaf mould or
well-rotted manure). They will also tolerate a chalky soil that has been
improved with well-rotted organic matter. Avoid full sun which can cause
yellowing of the leaves
-----------

Bingo!

As you can probably gather... I've only just got the gardening bug,
hence the reason I subscribed to this NG. Please bear with me if I ask
silly questions. I promise to have tried to find the answer before I ask
in the NG!



--
Wendy Tinley
SE Sheffield
4 miles west of junction 30 M1

"Wendy Tinley" wrote in message
news
I've only just subscribed to U.R.G. so didn't see your picture. I also
have an ailing Skimmia where the leaves are yellowing and I've kept it
watered and fed it with the correct fertiliser.

As you can probably gather... I've only just got the gardening bug, hence
the reason I subscribed to this NG. Please bear with me if I ask silly
questions. I promise to have tried to find the answer before I ask in the
NG!

Welcome Wendy!

Phil

On 08/05/2013 09:46, Wendy Tinley wrote:
On 07/05/2013 16:23, Ragnar wrote:
Remember I recently posted a photo of my ailing Skimmia?
I just dug it up and found it had next to no root system. It was at least
four years old so it must have had roots once. What could have been
eating
it? I couldn't find any trace of larvae or fungal threads.
R. :-(



I've only just subscribed to U.R.G. so didn't see your picture. I also
have an ailing Skimmia where the leaves are yellowing and I've kept it
watered and fed it with the correct fertiliser.

On writing the last sentence I thought I better check my facts. Yes...
the Skimmia likes a neutral to acid soil... however I think I've just
sorted out why the leaves are yellowing. The border where it is situated
is in full sun... and the RHS website states:

-----------
Cultivation
Grow on a good neutral to acid soil with added humus (from leaf mould or
well-rotted manure). They will also tolerate a chalky soil that has been
improved with well-rotted organic matter. Avoid full sun which can cause
yellowing of the leaves
-----------

Bingo!

As you can probably gather... I've only just got the gardening bug,
hence the reason I subscribed to this NG. Please bear with me if I ask
silly questions. I promise to have tried to find the answer before I ask
in the NG!



How great to find someone who bothers to try to find an answer on line
first.
Well done

Further to my earlier post. I moved my Skimmia to an easterly facing border. However it also only had a small root ball... I also noticed a lot of ants in the soil. Would ants have an impact on the Skimmia?

Thanks for the welcome Phil!

On 2013-05-08 22:08:05 +0100, said:

Further to my earlier post. I moved my Skimmia to an easterly facing
border. However it also only had a small root ball... I also noticed a
lot of ants in the soil. Would ants have an impact on the Skimmia?

I don't think the ants would in themselves - or not that I know of -
but they do indicate the soil is very dry. Their presence could disturb
the roots and deprive the plant of water if they're building a nest
underneath the plant, for example. But for some reason Skimmias do
seem to just sort of keel over and give up, at times. We have a couple
in the garden here which have started dying down one side and will have
to come out. There's no apparent reason for it and I've known it happen
in other gardens I've had, too. With regard to one without a good root
system, plants can be a bit like people - some are 'good do-ers' and
others aren't! With every good intention, a garden centre or nursery
can produce or buy in a batch that just isn't very good but for no
obvious reason.
--

Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon
www.helpforheroes.org.uk

On 09/05/2013 09:50, Sacha wrote:
On 2013-05-08 22:08:05 +0100, said:

Further to my earlier post. I moved my Skimmia to an easterly facing
border. However it also only had a small root ball... I also noticed a
lot of ants in the soil. Would ants have an impact on the Skimmia?

I don't think the ants would in themselves - or not that I know of - but
they do indicate the soil is very dry. Their presence could disturb the
roots and deprive the plant of water if they're building a nest
underneath the plant, for example.

Hi Sacha,

Thank you so much for your response. Yes the border has been very dry
but I'm now in the process of rectifying this. Let's hope the Skimmia is
'a doer' now that it has flitted to the east border. LOL that makes it
sound like I have an immense garden when in truth it is merely 26' wide
and 34' long.

--
Wendy Tinley
SE Sheffield
4 miles west of junction 30 M1

On 2013-05-09 11:29:04 +0100, Wendy Tinley said:

On 09/05/2013 09:50, Sacha wrote:
On 2013-05-08 22:08:05 +0100, said:

Further to my earlier post. I moved my Skimmia to an easterly facing
border. However it also only had a small root ball... I also noticed a
lot of ants in the soil. Would ants have an impact on the Skimmia?

I don't think the ants would in themselves - or not that I know of - but
they do indicate the soil is very dry. Their presence could disturb the
roots and deprive the plant of water if they're building a nest
underneath the plant, for example.

Hi Sacha,

Thank you so much for your response. Yes the border has been very dry
but I'm now in the process of rectifying this. Let's hope the Skimmia
is 'a doer' now that it has flitted to the east border. LOL that makes
it sound like I have an immense garden when in truth it is merely 26'
wide and 34' long.

Ime, you can move a plant just a few feet and it suddenly decides to
perk up and behave itself! ;-)
--

Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon
www.helpforheroes.org.uk

On 08/05/2013 09:46, Wendy Tinley wrote:
On 07/05/2013 16:23, Ragnar wrote:
Remember I recently posted a photo of my ailing Skimmia?
I just dug it up and found it had next to no root system. It was at least
four years old so it must have had roots once. What could have been
eating
it? I couldn't find any trace of larvae or fungal threads.
R. :-(



I've only just subscribed to U.R.G. so didn't see your picture. I also
have an ailing Skimmia where the leaves are yellowing and I've kept it
watered and fed it with the correct fertiliser.

On writing the last sentence I thought I better check my facts. Yes...
the Skimmia likes a neutral to acid soil... however I think I've just
sorted out why the leaves are yellowing. The border where it is situated
is in full sun... and the RHS website states:

-----------
Cultivation
Grow on a good neutral to acid soil with added humus (from leaf mould or
well-rotted manure). They will also tolerate a chalky soil that has been
improved with well-rotted organic matter. Avoid full sun which can cause
yellowing of the leaves
-----------

Bingo!

As you can probably gather... I've only just got the gardening bug,
hence the reason I subscribed to this NG. Please bear with me if I ask
silly questions. I promise to have tried to find the answer before I ask
in the NG!






Welcome to urg, Wendy. Congratulations on becoming a new gardener. May
I suggest that you start a new thread and introduce yourself, as it
helps everyone here to know roughly where you live and what your garden
and soil is like. You could do, as I and others have done, and include
it in your signature line, so it is always present.

Incidentally, the only silly question is the one that isn't asked. We
all had to start somehwere. Hope you enjoy urgling.

--
Spider
from high ground in SE London
gardening on clay

On 09/05/2013 15:30, Spider wrote:
On 08/05/2013 09:46, Wendy Tinley wrote:
On 07/05/2013 16:23, Ragnar wrote:
Remember I recently posted a photo of my ailing Skimmia?
I just dug it up and found it had next to no root system. It was at
least
four years old so it must have had roots once. What could have been
eating
it? I couldn't find any trace of larvae or fungal threads.
R. :-(



I've only just subscribed to U.R.G. so didn't see your picture. I also
have an ailing Skimmia where the leaves are yellowing and I've kept it
watered and fed it with the correct fertiliser.

On writing the last sentence I thought I better check my facts. Yes...
the Skimmia likes a neutral to acid soil... however I think I've just
sorted out why the leaves are yellowing. The border where it is situated
is in full sun... and the RHS website states:

-----------
Cultivation
Grow on a good neutral to acid soil with added humus (from leaf mould or
well-rotted manure). They will also tolerate a chalky soil that has been
improved with well-rotted organic matter. Avoid full sun which can cause
yellowing of the leaves
-----------

Bingo!

As you can probably gather... I've only just got the gardening bug,
hence the reason I subscribed to this NG. Please bear with me if I ask
silly questions. I promise to have tried to find the answer before I ask
in the NG!






Welcome to urg, Wendy. Congratulations on becoming a new gardener. May I
suggest that you start a new thread and introduce yourself, as it helps
everyone here to know roughly where you live and what your garden and
soil is like. You could do, as I and others have done, and include it in
your signature line, so it is always present.

Incidentally, the only silly question is the one that isn't asked. We
all had to start somehwere. Hope you enjoy urgling.




Sorry to respond to my own post but, having scrolled further down, I see
that you have included your details in your sig line. Sorry about that!
Some info about your garden would still be helpful, though.

--
Spider
from high ground in SE London
gardening on clay