Question
water when needed -- fertilized when needed... rather quickly (within 2 days) back of shrub (l in particular) became stipped of leaves and looks as if it is dead.. what happened and what can I do to prevent whatever it is from spreading.. have a total of 5 but this happened to only 1 thus far.,  HELP

Answer
Hi Maggie,


Leaf spot and root rot diseases attack ligustrum. Leaf spot fungi attack leaves and can cause premature leaf drop. The disease spots are usually light to dark brown with a yellow border. Control measures include destroying infected leaves and applying fungicide. Both are necessary for control.

Ligustrum root rot can be caused by several disease organisms. Infected plants may become unhealthy, making little growth, and/or part or all the plant will suddenly wilt and die. Examination of the root system reveals few if any remaining healthy, white functional roots. No control measures are effective once the plant is infected.

You can use a fungicide from the store or Atomic Grow which is organic and will make your plant healthy again.  You will need to check for drainage, use a slow release fertilizer.  

Using just a fungicide will get rid of the fungus, but that is all and it will come back.  Atomic Grow will continue working and restore the plants back to healthy  kathy