Question From: M. McGrath - Plymouth, Michigan, United States
Q: Dear Nancy, We have several boxwoods that border our walkways. As I walk around the various neighborhoods I notice that the boxwoods took a beating this year from the harsh winter weather. Many are yellow and appear dead. My husband trimmed our boxwoods back slightly to try and expose the greener, more living sections, of the plant. There still is a lot of yellow dead looking areas on each plant. Did we do the right thing? Should we now just leave them alone and see what happens? Thanks for your help in this matter.
A: Relax Mary, You did the right thing. Boxwoods take haircuts in thier stride. Just be sure to leave some green on the branches. By now you should have some idea how bad the damage was. If more than 30 percent of the shrub's leaves were lost it may have trouble regenerating. So far the weather has been kind this summer. I recommend mulching the boxwoods with 3 inches of wood chips or pine bark and feeding them Holly Tone at the recommended rate.
