Need help with my Daphne Odora!

Most people in my area have beautiful daphne's, except me! My daphne came with my house, and it's an old one, that has been losing more leaves every year. It looks bare and pathetic. Every year the leaves are tinier and tinier. I've heard they can be fussy. Is there any way to save a daphne? Or do I just have to throw in the towel and start over? I will post a picture tomorrow of what it looks like. Could it be a virus or fungus? If so, should I not replant a new one in it's place? Ideally I'd like to save it if I can. Some people say to mulch and fertilize, and others say just to let it be. I'm so confused! If it were a rhody I'd know exactly what to do...prune it hard, throw on fertilizer, mulch and coffee! Not sure what to do with my fussy daphne...hate to lose it! I'd love your advice.

Oh, daphne! Finicky plant, indeed.
Here's what I would do.....cut 1/3 of the branches back to 1/2 their length. Check that the ph of the soil is within the range they like. Fertilize with an organic or compost, immediately water enough to wash the fertilizer "tea" over the root area and then leave it alone.

If the cut back branches put out side growth, then you can do the others NEXT spring at the same time as now.
If the entire plants is unresponsive, then it may be time for a new daphne.

There is no way to tell about viruses without a picture. And, have you used a magnifiying glass to check for spider mites on the underside of the leaves? That's a distinct possibility given where you live.

Good luck!
Horticulturist
www.thegreenhousenurseryportangeles.com

Kate (Katye) grows lots of Daphnes and should respond soon, too. My Daphne looks pretty awful in the spring as well and I'm going to prune it this year. They do like warmth.

And welcome, both of you to DG!! Horticulturist, we have at least one other DG member from PA - she's not on so much anymore, but I'll bet she will be happy to know you're here.

Hi Cassy and Hort. Hope you stick around and join in with our happy group.

Thanks for the advice so far! I was going to take a picture of it today, then realized my camera is away with my hubby for the weekend. So, will post one probably monday.
I never thought about spider mites. That's a good thought.
Also, do you think a hard freeze (for Salem) could have done some harm? It didn't get above 25 degrees for a week this winter, and there was no precipitation. Just dry cold. It even got down into the teens a couple of nights in a row. But, other daphne's around town seem to be ok... not sure if that had anything to do with it.
Thanks Horticulturist for the pruning advice!
Do you think a rhody/azalea fertilizer would be good? Or, just stick to compost?

Thank you for the warm welcome. I've lurked for years. I know that without input, sites fizzle away so thought I'd throw in my two cents.
You all seem like nice group so I'm sure it will be an enjoyable experience.
Horticulturist
www.thegreenhousenurseryportangeles.com

Greetings, Cassy & Hort! Nice to have you here.
Cassy - your D. odora is probably fine. The past few winters have been hard on some these more borderline plants (Z7 - daph.) & I have seen the effects of the cold & freeze/thaw cycles that occured each year.
The most important thing for Daphnes is excellent drainage, pH neutral. They are susceptible to a few diseases, but it sounds like yours is just unhappy from the weather. One of mine is so sad - the other is fine.

Hort gave good advice - trim it back, and give it some organic fert or compost. I don't give any of my Daphnes anything special other than what has been mentioned. Don't mulch heavily & try not to disturb the root area.
I do knock any snow off them - they just don't need that on their branches as our snow is generally too heavy.
I think you'll feel much better about it by May/June.

Oh, and do try not to cast a wayward glance at it.
I put one in our Demo Garden and didn't look at it for, oh, must be neigh on 3 years.
In late January, before things begin to emerge, I take the weedeater to the garden to trim off any riff-raff that was missed in the fall cleanup. Just as I swung the weedeater toward this 3 foot monster that I thought at first was some weed that was too large to pull in the fall, I noticed the variegated leaves. Yikes! Carol Mackie has jpositively THRIVED on neglect!
I've heard stories of "the kids played basketball for years on top of my 4" rock daphne".....that sort of thing.
I think most people tend to coddle it to death. Me thinks it be the independent sort.

Horticulturist
www.thegreenhousenurseryportangeles.com

I agree, Hort. They are to be ignored except when in bloom.
When these odoras of mine cease to exist, I will not replace. There are too many fabulous Daphnes that are less fussy & are rich in the fragrance department.

Hort - love your site. I will be sure to stop by if I'm ever out your way . . .

Ok... forgot to take a picture of it in daylight... but here it is tonight. I'm standing above it, looking down from the porch as I took the picture. So, this is the top view.

So, the "neglect" theory is interesting. I gave 2 daphne's to a friend a few years ago. She has no gardening gene in her body whatsoever. I did plant them for her, but other than that she's been in charge of them - and of course, they look fabulous. I know they've been completely neglected too! I'd be surprised if she even watered them in the 100 degree heat of the summer.
So, a little light pruning, compost, and neglect is what I'll do.
My soil is a bit acidic, maybe add a tiny bit of lime too?

I think Daphne likes acidic soil, so I wouldn't add any lime.

http://www.buys-online.net/soil_ph.htm

You might consider the conditions your friend's plants are in: are they up next to a building, under a tree, which kind of tree, is the position exposed, is it windy, what's the soil like there, does water sit in that area in winter - that kind of thing. Literally, something as simple as being in shade on a north-facing slope (my house) vs. being in a well draining spot on a south-facing slope (Katye's house) can make all the difference.

Thanks everyone for your helpful advice. I now have some tools to work with, and will see if I can help my daphne a bit. Hopefully it will bounce back soon!
I pruned a shrub that could have been shading it a bit much, will check drainage, add compost, and do some pruning ... then neglect. :)
Happy Spring!

And i went out to check on mine - i think i will move her, but not today.
And i saw another Daphne at the Nursery today - cannot remember the name, so I'd better go back & purchase her.

My odora looks just like yours. Has been thriving for years. The trunk is black and the blooms and new growth is small and turning brown. Very sad. Will watch and hope but may be shopping for a new one. I think the cold temp. here in early winter killed it. Time will tell.
Sorry to see you have the same problem.

I have a daphne tangutica about which I nearly posted a few days ago. I decided to read up on it instead and found several sources saying not to prune. On the other hand, a friend of mine thought she had lost her odora several years ago when roofers broke off a huge chunk but it (finally) recovered and looks great now.

My daphne has been in a pot for years and done great but late this winter it began losing leaves until they were all gone. I decided to just plant it: the roots seemed strong at the time.

Although the scratch test shows green, the stems are beginning to look quite wizened. I am leaning toward adopting a policy of not babying plants. If they can't survive the conditions, replace them with something that can, but a few are too hard to give up on - especially when I have raised them from "babies".

karijb, I hear you! I also have adopted a policy of "survival of the fittest" in my yard...although i make many acceptions! There are many plants I simply can't let go...Daphnes are one. So, I did what was said, and pruned back my daphne a little, and surprisingly it looks a bit better. I haven't composted it yet, but will do that in June. The green leaves that started to sprout are looking healthy!

I don't know what you all believe, but i believe God cares about the plants we love, so i pray for some of my plants. Sounds funny! But, the Bible says, He cares about the big and little things alike. So, I figure it doesn't hurt! Prune, compost, pray...it's all good!

They're pining for warmth and sun. They need it. Our temps have been 10 degrees below normal for this time of year and too rainy (I know I don't need to tell you that). I will probably lose mine and my Edgeworthia this year if something doesn't happen and fast!

On the sunny side-- It is great to have all these new people joining into the conversation.

Hey Cassy - if it works, you'll have lots of us doing it. "God works in mysterious ways." If mommas plants are happy, then mommas happy!

It's nice to have all of you on the thread. :-)

Welcome to all! I have have a daphne odora for years and it was happy hiding under a rhodie.....but it was very crowded so when I dug it out to move it it had air rooted giving me two. I moved it to the south side of the house where it will get some intermittant sun....hopefully it will be happy there! I really wanted that fragrance close to the front door.

Linda - did you move it recently? How wide is it, and how wide was the rootball?
Thanks for estimates!
I need to move mine into a larger space.

FYI to you all... I visited the Oregon Garden in Silverton, Oregon today (a must-visit if you're ever in the Willamette Valley), and their Daphne Odora's didn't look good either. So, apparently it was really just a hard winter for them. I figure if the Oregon Garden doesn't have a good daphne - and nearly everything there ALWAYS looks perfect - then I should feel ok about mine looking sad.
One of the gardeners there said a lot of plants were hit hard over the winter. Good to know it wasn't me. :)

Off the subject... but tomorrow we are preparing the beds in our neighborhood's community garden! Yeah!

The daphne 'Carol Mackie' in the garden is a good 4 feet wide, 3 feet tall and in full bloom. We got a terrible freeze last December and it has been frosty here on alternate mornings for the past week.
This daphne has no shelter of any kind. In full, open garden with nary a shrub growing near. I sneak quick peeks at it and sidle up to it on the premise of planting something else, lest it realize that I really am endeared by it. Tomorrow morning I will walk quickly past, inhaling deeply, as I deceive it into thinking I am present only to plant a new perennial close by.
The less interest you show, the more remarkable they become. Persnickity though she may be, it is well worth the space dedicated to it. FYI, this garden bed is slightly elevated over the pathways. I suspect that has helped immensly with the drainage, which daphnes are prone to object to less than ideal conditions.

Horticulturist
www.thegreenhousenurseryportangeles.com
Now on FaceBook, too! "Greenhouse Nursery"

Katye- I just moved it about 3 weeks ago the root ball was fairly shallow and only about 12 " wide. I initially put it in a pot till I could get it planted which I did just last week. It is showing few signs of the ordeal and the smaller plant that air rooted is still in a pot......I'm not sure where it will end up yet. Because of the lack of light it was "bent over" to reach the sun and I planted it away from exposure hoping it will turn itself around to seek the light. I'm not sure if that was a mistake or not?????????? I will post a pic.

A late welcome to both Cassy and Hort.

I adore daphnes, and have several well established ones that are part of the "not happy with this last winter" club.

I am laughing at Hort's "pretending not to notice it" strategy with the daphne, and am reminded of something that I read years ago that went along the lines of "Daphne is a very fussy plant, and if you have a healthy one, you should admire it silently as the first time that you bring a fellow gardener to admire it, it will have withered away to nothing...."

I will be curious to see how the pruning and ignoring comes along.

Well this is it and it ain't looking so very happy. But the side shoot is looking good....maybe I didn't plant it at the right depth??

Azorina, I've seen much worse daphne. I think this one may very well recover nicely. It looks like it may be a bit deep....was it at this level in the prior location? The fact that the side shoot is under soil makes the depth suspect. At the same time, if it is rooting in now, disturbing it wouldn't be the best.

Once you see new growth beginning, you can be assured that it is recovering. At that time, you may wish to consider cutting it back, one third of the stems at a time. It will be a 3 year process, but you'll leave enough to photosynthsize while rejuvenating the branch you've cut back. Then it will finally be balanced and well shaped.

Thank you for your kind welcome, feller dahpneophiles. You all seem like a nice bunch to co-mingle among.
Horticulturist

www.thegreenhousenurseryportangeles.com

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Thanks Horticulturist for the tips...I know that Daphnes can be a little challenging!