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On the whole, there are few pests and diseases that effect box plants; in fact they are more likely to suffer damage through lack of nutrients or from over or under watering. However if you do have problems with your Box hedging plants it will probably be down to one of the following three ailments.
PESTS
Box suckers - psylla buxi.
PESTS
Box suckers - psylla buxi.
Symptoms: These small nymphs feed on the sap of young leaves, stunting their growth and causing them to curve inwards like tiny cabbage leaves.
Treatment: It is generally not necessary to treat for this condition unless there is a severe infestation. Try regular clipping to remove infected foliage as this will help to keep down the adult flies, nymphs and any eggs that may over-winter. If necessary, spray with a contact insecticide from May to June to kill off the nymphs.
DISEASES
Box leaf spot – Phyllosticta species, Hyponectria buxi, and others.
Treatment: It is generally not necessary to treat for this condition unless there is a severe infestation. Try regular clipping to remove infected foliage as this will help to keep down the adult flies, nymphs and any eggs that may over-winter. If necessary, spray with a contact insecticide from May to June to kill off the nymphs.
DISEASES
Box leaf spot – Phyllosticta species, Hyponectria buxi, and others.
Symptoms: This is a fungal infection that can be caused by various species; the most common are listed above. Typically the infection is identifiable by characteristic pale brown or yellow blotches usually found on the underside of the leaves.
Treatment: There are no control methods for these infections other than trimming and burning infected material
Box Rust – Puccinia buxi.
Treatment: There are no control methods for these infections other than trimming and burning infected material
Box Rust – Puccinia buxi.
Symptoms: This fungal infection is identified by small, dark brown, pustules that develop on the top and underside of the leaves. These marks generally appear in early autumn but can last right through to the spring.
Treatment: As with the Box sucker, clipping off the infected foliage is all that is really necessary. You can try a systemic fungicide but the plants vascular system is fairly dormant at this time of year and so it is not likely to be very effective.
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Treatment: As with the Box sucker, clipping off the infected foliage is all that is really necessary. You can try a systemic fungicide but the plants vascular system is fairly dormant at this time of year and so it is not likely to be very effective.
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2 comments:
Yikes! What's this? A post on box diseases that makes no mention of that terror of terrors, the fearsome box blight that has driven men insane: Cylindrocladium buxicola and Volutella buxi?
These are nasty infections and I have seen more than one grand old box hedge have to be removed after years of vain struggle - cutting it back, digging away the top layer of soil, spraying constantly - all futile.
That said, the good hygiene that you advise here is the only way to prevent it: the dead leaves that collect under the hedge are the springboard for a proper infection.
This post is very informative. Box hedging plants are more likely to suffer damage from pests and disease because of the lack of nutrients or from over or under watering. A good hygiene practice is the best to avoid this infection.
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