Sick Shrubs

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CA2DC Arlington, VA Sep 13, 2019

These shrubs are planted across the front of our house against the porch. At first I noticed a small clump of dead leaves about 4-5 inches in diameter. Over the course of 1-2 weeks the small clump of dead leaves has expanded to about 2 feet in diameter. (I’m in the DC metro area and we’ve had quite a bit of rain throughout the summer and early fall.)

My worry is that it’s some sort of disease that is going to run through each of the bushes until all of them in front of the house are dead. Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated! Thank you so much!!

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Post #10445949
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hcmcdole Powder Springs, GA(Zone 7b) Sep 13, 2019

Trace the dead branches down to the ground or wherever the dead starts. It could be some kind of damage (maybe insects, maybe a broken stem).

I would cut the dead part out and keep an eye on the rest of the bushes.

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CA2DC Arlington, VA Sep 16, 2019

Thanks for the advice. I'll give it a try. It appears that the dead leaves are spreading laterally across branches/stems, but maybe I'm wrong.

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CA2DC Arlington, VA Sep 16, 2019

I cut out the dead branches and once it was removed I noticed small white dots on all the nearby branches. Actually, most of the bush has little white spots over most branches. When I touch the white dots they smear, almost like a powder. Not sure if they're a tiny critter (too small to tell) or a fungus. I've added some more photos. Any suggestions for next steps appreciated!!
Thank you!!

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Post #10446409
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hcmcdole Powder Springs, GA(Zone 7b) Sep 17, 2019

Could very well be fungi breaking down dead tissue. Is this on healthy tissue as well?

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CA2DC Arlington, VA Sep 17, 2019

They are Cherry Laurel shrubs. I've cut out the two dead branches, but once removed I see white spots of varying sizes (see photos) on most of the healthy branches of the same two bushes. Other bushes nearby in the same row have a couple white dots, but very few. My best guess is that's it's scales of some type.

These bushes are a 4 ft screen in front of our front porch, and I'd hate to remove them and start over, so I guess I need to somehow treat the infected plants.

Any suggestions for how I might go about that would be appreciated!!

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