I've just given up on trying to save (been trying for 6 months) a viburnum odo var. awabuki and I am just very curious to know if anyone could tell me what the possible cause of it's problems were. It was beautiful, green and full when I planted it in April 07, then started to drop leaves, some leaves had brownish spots on them (which did not seem like leafspot) which were treated with anti-fungal and bacterial potions. It became "leggy" and I did'nt prune it because there were no leaves lower down and I thought I may kill it. About a month ago I was very excited to see that allthough there were almost no leaves left at the tips, lush new leaves were appearing at the bottom of each stem (just above ground). During the period before this I did not water once weekly because we would have a rainshower almost every other day. But then the rain stopped and I resumed my weekly watering of about one and a half gallon per plant. All of a sudden the new leaves started wilting (the baby leaves first, and then the bigger ones), and would fall off at the slightest touch as if nothing is holding them to the stem. I then trimmed off all remaining stems (now dead up until about 2 inches from the ground), and two days later it looked as if the entire plant was started to either wilt (the leaves), or dry up (the rest of the stems), so I just gave up and dug it up. My question is: what causes new growth to wilt and drop like this? Some landscapers say that this Viburnum awabuki needs to have lots of water, but others say not to over-water it. Should I water less but more often? And how much is too much? I started out with three of these in my garden, planted at the same time, spaced about 15 ft apart, and only one has survived. It received the same care as the others, the only difference in it's location is that it gets the early morning shade from a nearby palm for about an hour longer than the others. Thanks to anyone who cared to read this entire sad tale and who may be able to clear up this mystery!