Beginner Gardening: what's killing my hardy hibiscus?, 0 by patsdogs

patsdogs wrote:
Hi, and thanks again.
I've never been able to examine the roots of any of my plants to see if they've been chewed, but last year I had two roses nearly topple over from something tunneling under them. I caught it in time and was able to correct it but one of plants has never really recovered. I suppose I'll have to take it up and see what's going on or move it to another location. I also lost a big spiderwort when it looked like something ate its roots.
No, the plants are not close enough together that I wouldn't be able to see evidence of any critters. I put the mulch down last year, so that makes it harder to locate a problem, but it began before the mulch was in place. The attached photo shows the distance between the plants in a section of the garden. The whole bed is about 22' deep and 80' wide. It's big.