I planted about 50 sky pencil hollies about three months ago. About 5 of them have turned brown and some are losing their leaves. There used to be tall over grown red tips in the same row before the hollies, I tried trimming the red tips back thinking that they'd grow back thicker, well they never grew back, so I cut them down, removed the stumps and planted the hollies. I also put in new top soil and used a Pete moss and holly tone mixture when I planted them. I bought them from Costco, yesterday I saw someone returning a sky pencil holly to the same Costco. Do you know any Blythe that is affiliated with sky pencils in the va beach area, or have any suggestions of what I can do with these dying hollies?

Thank you in advance for your time and help.

R/
Dave

Answer #2 · Brent Wilson's Answer · When driving around neighborhoods in our area (Atlanta metro) I see nice healthy Sky Pencil holly everywhere. Most folks are using them in foundation plantings where height and a narrow plant is needed. That being said, I've also heard from quite a few folks about the die-back Brooks mentioned that is most likely caused by consistently wet or soggy soil, which leads to root rot. I would also highly recommend purchasing plants from a local independent nursery and garden center that takes care of their plants. Big box stores just don't have the facility or the knowledgeable staff that knows how to properly care for plants. As Brooks suggested, check the soil to make sure it's not too wet and return the dead plants and try to get an exchange or a refund.

I'm not sure what type of native soil you have in your area? However, keep in mind that peat moss holds nine times its weight in water. In heavy soils that tend to hold water, such as the clay-based soil we have here in Georgia, peat moss is not the best choice for soil amendment. I always recommend a soil amendment or conditioner that contains decomposed bark matter or fines as it's base. Any type of soil amendment that improves drainage is good. The only time I would recommend peat moss is for raised annual flower beds where retaining moisture in the soil is sometimes needed or as one of the components in a potting mix that will be used in container gardens.)

Answer #1 · Brooks Wilson's Answer · Hi Dave,

Sky Pencil Hollies are extremely susceptible to root rot. Over watering, or too much watering of the foliage can cause big problems with Sky Pencil Hollies.

If Cosco employees over watered the Hollies root rot could have set in before you took them out of the store. This is very common at the big box stores.

I've also seen Sky pencil Hollies get die back. Dieback is a non-curable disease that forms knots in the stems and branches of plants. This knot restricts the flow of water and nutrients to the stem.

Sky Pencil hollies are also susceptible to spider mites. To check for spider Mites hold a white piece of paper under the leaves where they turn from brown to green. Tap the plant to knock the spider Mites on to the paper. If you see little red specks crawling on the paper you will know that it is probably spider mites. Control of spider Mites can be achieved by spraying with Neem Oil. Neem oil is labeled to control spider Mites.

What you can do:

1- Return the dead Hollies and get a refund.

2- Prune all of the dead growth from the remaining Hollies. Prune at least 6 inches below the dead part of the stem.

3- Make sure that the Hollies were not planted below ground level. The top surface of the root ball should be exposed and be slightly above ground level with no soil piled on top. If this is not the case, you will need to raise the plants. Apply a thin layer of mulch over the root ball, but no soil.

4- Buy replacements from a local independent nursery that selectively hand waters their plants. In general, independent nurseries know more about taking care of plants, and as well can better inform you of how to take care of plants.

Hope this helps you out.

Brooks Wilson))