Browning of conifers from the insidemay surprise us. The conifers seem to be quite he althy, lush green, while after opening the shoots and taking a closer look, it turns out that there are plenty of brown twigs inside. We explainwhy the conifers turn brown from the insideand whether you should worry about this phenomenon. See what arecauses of browning conifers from the insideand how to help conifers withering in this way!
Why do conifers turn brown from the inside?
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Conifers turn brown from the inside because they are too densely planted
When planting a hedge of conifers, e.g. thuja or cypress trees, we musttake into account the appropriate spacing of plants , taking into account their target width.
Sometimes, to get a quick effect covered, and the hedge is planted too densely, so over time the plants have insufficient light reaching the shoots andstart to turn brown from the insideIn this case, regularly clean the hedge of browning shoots and trim the conifers so that more sun can reach them. Popular hedge plants such as the thuja 'Emerald' are planted every 60 cm, while the thuja 'Brabant' - every 70 cm.
Conifers turn brown from the inside because they naturally shed needles
Conifers, although they are evergreen plants, theirslow browning and shedding of needles is a natural phenomenonIf the conifers are dense, light does not reach the inside of the plant, as a result of which the shoots turn brown and gradually die off. And so, for examplegentle browning of the thuja from the inside is a normal symptom of this plant's development, during which it sheds 2-3 years old needles.
In spring, when we start gardening, it is worthcheck all the conifers and thoroughly clean them of browning shootsSuch treatments will guarantee the gradual compaction of plants and their he althy appearance.
Conifers turn brown from the inside because they are not watered enough
In the case of conifers such as pineat the end of summer and autumn, the needles on last year's and older shoots turn yellow, turn brown from the inside and gradually fall offThis is a phenomenon resulting from too little water and long drought. Conifers in the next year will develop new shoots and fill the cavities, but in orderto reduce the rapid browning of the conifers from the inside , the plants should be watered regularly during drought.
Conifers turn brown inside because they are attacked by fungal disease
Thuja, junipers, yews and pines can be attacked byfungal diseases that contribute to the browning of conifers from the inside .
The disease thatmanifests itself in the characteristic browning of conifers from the insideis phytophthorosis. Browning begins at the base of the trunk and gradually goes higher, plants grow more slowly, shoots turn yellow, turn brown, and consequently the plant dies.
Phytophthorosis is a disease that attacks the root system of the plantAfter removing the conifer from the ground it can be seen that the hair roots are strongly reduced, which prevents the plant from properly picking up water and nutrients from the soil.
Pathogens remain in the soil for a long time. Therefore,in the place of the infected plant, it is advised not to plantmore plants, without at least proper soil disinfection, e.g. with Magnicur Energy 840 SL, which can also be used to spray the infected plant. The biological preparation Polyversum WP may also be a helpful measure.
Otherfungal disease causing conifers to turn brown from the insideis gray mold.Water-soaked spots appear most often on the needles or scales of conifers in the middle of the shrub. With high humidity, a gray, dusty coating appears on the stains. As the humidity drops, the stains gradually dry out.To protect the conifers from browning from the inside, caused by gray mold , after finding the first symptoms of the disease, remove the diseased shoots and spray the plant with Topsin M 500 SC (0.1% concentration) .
MSc Eng. Joanna Białowąs
