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tolleyjenkins

Juniper turning brown from the inside out

tolleyjenkins
13 years ago

I've got about 25 junipers on a hill in front of my house, most of which I planted 14 months ago (thanks to recommendations from the good advice here). They're just starting to turn brown. Interestingly, it looks like they're turning brown from the center out, rather than from the tips inward like I would expect. I have no idea how to tell what the cause is or what to do. We've had a good amount of rain lately and temperatures just went below freezing for the first time, but I wouldn't think that would cause this. . .

Any thoughts on what I should do. I don't want these babies to die! Some pictures of three different ones are below, in case they help. Thanks in advance!

http://imgur.com/Uwluf&jjQ9q&qiLoB&fxY6j

http://imgur.com/Uwluf&jjQ9ql&qiLoB&fxY6j

http://imgur.com/Uwluf&jjQ9q&qiLoBl&fxY6j

http://imgur.com/Uwluf&jjQ9q&qiLoB&fxY6jl

Comments (6)

  • tolleyjenkins
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Haven't checked for soil moisture. Is the concern that they haven't gotten enough or too much?

    The soil tends to stay pretty moist on this hill. It's adjacent along the front of my property and the entire lot slopes towards this hill.

    The hill is divided in half by a stone sidewalk. Only the juniper on one side are showing this browning. The juniper on the other half are perfectly fine.

    I inspected close up and didn't see any bagworms (admittedly, I've never seen a bagworm in person though).

  • Iris GW
    13 years ago

    I would call the extension service - they might be familiar with common ailments.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Extension service link

  • tolleyjenkins
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    esh_ga, can you fill me in on what the "extension service" is?

  • Iris GW
    13 years ago

    The extension service is funded by UGA (and in fact, there are extension services available in almost every state funded by a state university). They provide help on a variety of things, but the one you're interested in is home landscape questions. Each county has it's own office and it is usually staffed by volunteers that have been trained through the Master Gardener program.

    They are available, free, to you to answer a variety of questions, from plant recommendations, to lawn care tips, to disease questions and even for plant identification. Sometimes they can answer your question over the phone - especially if you can email them the picture link - and sometimes you may need to bring in a sample of the diseased plant.

    The county office approach allows them to offer more specific local answers since Georgia is such a large state.

  • brandon7 TN_zone7
    13 years ago

    "Haven't checked for soil moisture. Is the concern that they haven't gotten enough or too much?"

    Either could cause similar symptoms. Lack of moisture would be much more common though. Although this sounds like a long shot, given the information you've posted so far, I'd still definitely check.

    "I inspected close up and didn't see any bagworms..."

    Bagworms are sometimes a little hard to spot because they can blend in (color-wise) with stems and dead needles. But, their larger size helps to make them easier to spot than many smaller pests. Here's what they look like:

    Your local extension office may indeed be able to give you some good advise and even offer a first-hand look at a branch, if you bring one to their office. The one downside of extension offices though is that their expertise may vary greatly from office to office or from representative to representative. Unfortunately, I've seen advise given by some extension offices that was just laughable. Hopefully, that's the exception though.

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