Maybe it is like the grevillea shrubs that only have a life span of 7 years and we will need to dig it out and plant another bird friendly Australian shrub. Attracting honey birds with blossoms has been a priority in this garden. But before getting to the cutting mode the why had to be figured out. To me it was an intriguing enigma because from a distance the shrub looked fabulously healthy and up to now Ben and I had not noticed the dying branches.
Thank goodness I got up close and personal.
The Trouble shooting in the garden has taken centre stage on this lovely cool sunny Sunday morning, my walk will have to be this afternoon.
When I looked closer at the big shrub I saw flowers coming out and new buds forming . This had to be a positive.
The extra healthy buds and leaves gave me some reassurance that so far the shrub was not a goner yet.
The flowers are blooming beautifully, how interesting that each little bud opens up at different times. It is like a camera's time delay is in action.
"Ben, what the heck is happening? Is the shrub damaged somewhere or is it slowly dying bit by bit?" The only solution was to get under and look and of course Ben being action practical one in this relationship. I am extra good with ideas and organising. So I supervised while Ben crawled under to investigate. "There is a potted climbing plant strangling one part of the tree, it has wrapped itself around the trunk and sucking the life out of it."
So he pulled it off and then chopped off the dead section of the shrub. This is the offending plant, that I confess did not know was there. We inherited this pot and did not move it when we shifted in. Check out the big vine, it was a happy thriving one. The vine needed a different position in the garden, definitely not under our flowering shrub.
Once the parts of the trunk were chopped the job was finished. The shrub is not dying so a happy ending to a little bit of garden drama.
Thanks for dropping by to read my words
