Droopy or curled foliage on this shrub is a sure sign your plant isn’t happy.
Here’s how to diagnose and correct the problem.
Depending on the season, there are actually several reasons these shrubs might start looking unhappy.
Credit: Randall Schieber
If you do that each year, youll be rewarded with lots of flowers the next spring.
The shrub is trying to keep water from evaporating from its leaves.
Keep that needed moisture in the ground byadding two inches of mulch.
The shrubs have fairly shallow root systems, so they need a regular supply of water.
If rain isnt falling,you have to turn on the sprinklersor get busy with a hose.
If you’re free to, use pine bark mulch, as itcreates the acidic soilrhododendrons prefer.
Putting one of these shrubs in a wet spot in the garden is always a mistake.
A pathogen called phytophthera takes hold in overly damp conditions.
To see if this disease is the problem, you’ll need to do a little digging.
If the roots are mushy and black instead of firm and tan-colored, root rot has set in.
