Tricky Trees!
This time of year you may begin noticing that your new evergreens are turning yellow or auburn and dropping their needles. Despite being called “ever-green”, these plants shed their needles in fall just like other trees and shrubs.
Because the evenings are cool, all evergreens start to show fall shedding on the interior of the plant. This is absolutely normal and natural, and occurs on mature growth only. With rhododendrons, you may notice the interior leaves will begin to turn yellow and then fall.
Typically, fall shedding is more prominant with newly installed or transplanted evergreens. The shedding can vary from year-to-year from just a little bit, to a bit too much. This, needle drop, is not an indication that the plant is in dire need of anything or unhealthy. Your plants will likely evolve and develop more growth in the next season to make-up for the leaf drop this year.
To keep your plants happy and healthy, there are steps to can take to generally maintain them:
- Water as needed until the ground freezes
- Prune dead branches.
- Spray for pests that are actively feeding on the plant.
- Fertilize with a fall blended fertilizer or Holly Tone fertilizer.