Smoke bush showing signs of infected by Verticillium Wilt

3 years ago

I have Winecraft Cotinus and Golden Spirit smokebush planted in ground in my back yard. We planted them around memorial day (this year) and they were both doing great.

Full Sun (6-8Hrs) ; Zone 5; Chicago suburbs

Just recently seeing this behavior from both the plants where I am seeing change in the leaf color and wilt (please check the attached pics). I am watering them frequently (every alternate day).

I am no plant expert but after checking Google came across Verticillium Wilt (VW) and how it can affect these bushes. Can someone please help me identify if this is related to

1. VW

2. Over watering (smoke bushes do well in poor water conditions again I read this on google)

3. Under watering (could also be due to under watering but I am watering every alternate day due to hot weather and Chicago is not getting much rains. You can see in the 1st pic the soil near the plant is moist)

4. Something else??

Any help is much appreciated. Me and my wife were really excited about these when we planted them but now seeing their current condition makes us sad.

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Comments (6)

Sara Malone Zone 9b
3 years ago
If this were at my house this would not be verticillium it would be dehydration, more from the newness of the planting than you not watering enough. The root balls are small and it's difficult for a young plant with a small root system to keep itself hydrated in hot weather. If you could give them a little shade it would help (umbrella, overturned lawn chair, etc.) Verticillium typically presents with branches getting affected one by one, and it is unlikely that both shrubs would be affected simultaneously.
gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
3 years ago
The first might be verticillium but I agree with Sara that the second is showing signs of dehydration/insufficient watering. I see no wilting at all with the Golden Spirit compared to the first....just signs of being in too hot and too dry conditions.

VW can present in different ways and it is not uncommon for young, not yet well established plants to go over all at once....being alive and apparently healthy one day and fully wilted and dead the next. I have seen that happen too many time with various maples (usually Japanese), smokebushes, viburnums and raspberries. I have only ever seen the branch by branch dieback with larger, well established and very mature trees.

Make sure you are watering deeply enough. Leave the hose in place at the base of the plant with the water coming at a slow trickle long enough for the water to soak down the full depth of the rootball. Could take as long as 20-30 minutes, even for plants of that size.

If the first recovers with some good deep waterings (and I have no doubt the Golden Spirit will), then it is not VW :-) There is no recovery from that.
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
3 years ago
gorgeous perfect lawn ...

lawn irrigation would not be providing enough water to get to where the roots are ... FIND OUT about moisture 3 to 6 inches down.. by digging a couple holes with a hand trowel ... adjust water accordingly ...

second... was the lawn recently sprayed ...

third ... do you realize how large these things get ...

https://duckduckgo.com/?t=ffcm&q=Winecraft+Cotinus+and+Golden+Spirit+smokebush&iax=images&ia=images

i cant see the rest of the landscape ... but im not sure i would bury what looks like a gorgeous wall ... or it might be your turret ... lol ... the bed where its planted will probably have to be widened to at least 6 feet in the not to far distant future.. if it gets its vigor back ...

otherwise.. what they said ...

ken
SK
Original Author
3 years ago
@Sara Malone Zone 9b and @gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9). Thanks for replying back. I was under the impression that I am watering it right but looks like I need to revisit my watering technique. I am watering them on alternate days but now I will follow the slow watering technique as mentioned by you.

@ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5 Thanks for getting back. To answer your question about spraying the lawn, we use the lawn maintenance service and they treat the lawn with organic fertilizer once a month. Hope that answers your question. As far as the size of the smokebush is concern, they are planted about 4.5 ft away from the patio sitting wall. I will take your suggestion and will plan to make the planting bed bigger. As of now it all depends on if these smokebush will survive .... lol.

I am happy that we are ruling out VW as of now. After making this post I also cut the branch for one of them and found no black circles or residue and I am satisfied coz black circle within the stem could also indicate VW.

Thanks again and appreciate the feedback. If you have more queries related to the issue at hand I will be happy to get back.
SK
Original Author
3 years ago
I did small digging around both of these plants and found water- logged soil around the root ball. The water is trying to ooze out of the soil when I try to dig. Does it means this is the case of over watering or water being standing around the plant for too long? Will this rot the root and this is what is happening to these plants?
gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
3 years ago
"Does it means this is the case of over watering or water being standing around the plant for too long?"

Yes. Although not fussy about specific soil conditions, sharp drainage is a must.

"Will this rot the root and this is what is happening to these plants?"

It can. And both insufficient and over watering will produce similar symptoms initially.

Smoke bush showing signs of infected by Verticillium Wilt

Comments (6)

Sara Malone Zone 9b

gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)

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Smoke bush showing signs of infected by Verticillium Wilt

Comments (6)

Sara Malone Zone 9b

gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)

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