old plant

[landimad]

Need help with this old plant of mine.
I bought this as a small pot plant about fifteen years ago.
We have had a hard winter, and the leaves are brown and brittle.

Is it OK to clip off the brown dead areas to rejuvenate the growth that is still there?

I am going to get some ericaceous soil to put around it.

I hope that it can be saved for a few years more though. It has a lovely blue flower on it and the bees tend to like it too.

[Robert_Brenchley]

I think I'd cut that well back and let it all regenerate.

[landimad]

I shall do this, but I think the poor thing may not get over such a drastic haircut.
Is there anything else I can do to aid this course of action?

[Tee Gee]

You could try rooting a few of the prunings and should your shrub succumb to the drastic pruning you might have a few replacement for it in years to come!

When you prune it back only prune it back to a new bud on each branch,

[landimad]

Great idea, I wish I could tell which are the buds and which is not.
The trouble with this sort of plant is, I can never work out where the buds will come from.
Such a hard bark and no sign of shoots loses me.

[landimad]

Well,
I have given the old plant a trim and it looks worse than I thought.
I have not taken any cuttings as there is not a lot left on it as yet.
I might take some later on if this can be done.

[ACE]

Now to me that looks like a rhododendron or azalea. So don't cut any more off until it has flowered, they don't take to pruning all that well, but getting rid of all that frostburnt rubbish should encourage it to shoot from lower down.

Underplant it with perrenial geraniums, that will cover up the ugly bit.

[landimad]

Thanks ACE,
I will try to under plant, but not with geraniums as they can get out of hand in here.
I got some and they grow like mad.
I was thinking more in the lines of Aubrieta or Campanula.