Marianne's Response
How to tell if a ceanothus is still alive
At what point do I accept that my Ceanothus ‘Diamond Heights’ did not survive the winter? It has shown no signs of life yet. The winter of 2012 took it to bare stems, but it came back to life. I don’t know if the winter of 2013 finally did it in. Is there a way to check to see if it is still alive?
Posted by Christy Nicandri on April 18, 2014
Marianne's Response
I always wait until mid June - Father's Day to be exact and than I get tough and dig out anything still looking ugly. You can check for life by scratching the bark near the base of the shrub to see if there is any green under the brown. This is not a for sure method however. Sometimes there is still a bit of green but than the shrub dies when it tries to grow.
Good luck and Keep growing,
Marianne Binetti
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