I have a 2 year old Styrax that looks as though it is dying. There are some branches with new growth on and some new growth towards the trunk but many more dead branches than living. Should I prune it back and if so when?
Can you possibly gives us any more information such as the conditions at the planting site in terms of sun exposure, soil characteristics, or watering? Styrax is only hardy down to zone 5 lack so cold hardiness can be a problem. It is also suseptable to the ambrosia beetle. More info is definately need please.
I am in NorthWest New Jersey but as I`m from the UK I`m not sure what zone this is! The Styrax faces East so has sun between sunrise and midday. It was fine last year and I don`t see any evidence of beetles although last year we had very bad Japanese bettle infestation but this tree did not seem to suffer. The new shoots that are coming appear healthy but so many of the branches are dead. Do you think I should prune it back and hope for the best!!
Pruning is not an answer to anything sick. You're in zone 6b or possibly 7 (just Google a USDA zone map and you'll get lots to look at and find your zone. Anyhow, you still haven't said what conditions it's in - how often do you water, is it indoors or out, how much sun (hours) it's getting, what the soil mix is... without any info., it's hard to advise you.
prune anything dead, diseased or damaged off. anytime. dont cut in to healthy wood to try to encourage new growth on an unhealthy plant, leave as many leaves as possible.
Thanks for the information. The tree is about 6ft tall. outside and gets at least 4 hours of sun. daily We did not have a very hard winter this year with very little snow. I have not given it much extra watering it has really only had whatever rainfall we have had. There are some new shoots appearing daily but the main trunk/branch has nothing on it.