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Australian Native Plants

What is killing my Lilly Pillys?

2 years ago

Have had my LPs for nearly 5 years since the landscaping was done. All has been fine up until the last 4 months or so. Twigs / small branches have started to die - twig death happens quite quickly (2/3 days) and nothing is eating them that I can detect. Most of the 20 plants are affected but not all of them - one adjacent to one of the worst affected ones if absolutely fine for now. Have tried Eco Oil, White Oil, Pyrethrum as well as Mancozeb. The way things are going I will lose the battle. All other shrubs and trees in the garden are healthy and unaffected. I am guessing it is fungal. The death never happens at the bottom of the plant - always from the middle up and generally at the crown of the tree. Red box in the photo shows what it looks like after day or 3 - give it 2 more days and the twig will be dead and the leaves dry. We live in Marrickville Sydney. Any help at all is hugely appreciated.

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Comments (2)

HU-681346181
2 years ago
We are in Summer Hill and had exactly the same problem. Several bought quite mature and planted in a row along a back fence - died completely except for the very bottom fifth of the plant that remained healhy. We never found out what the problem was - i imagined it was the roots suffering and only having the strength to keep the bottom part alive. - i thought perhaps as they were planted just before we had that long wet season 18 months ago that it may have been too wet. I also thought it might be cut grubs in the soil so i mixed up neem oil with some detergent and water and soaked around the base. In the end i left them to their own devices - a year later and the main trunk is dead on each of them but the majority of them have created a new trunk from

a side branch and doing very well. They were bought at about 1.4 m height, died down to about the bottom 20cm and whilst most of the original upper plant is a dead stick, the new branches now reach past a metre again - it took a year for them to recover. Pissibly cut grubs but not sure. i just lesve then alone now.
Frank_S
2 years ago
I can't see any photo. If it's fungal, it may be myrtle rust. Check out the details here: https://www.business.qld.gov.au/industries/farms-fishing-forestry/agriculture/biosecurity/plants/priority-pest-disease/myrtle-rust
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