It's not Fungus - Shrub Repair The Problem As we come into spring, we have received a few calls pertaining to rough looking shrubbery. At first sight, the thought was an early blight (fungus). A closer inspection revealed that it was winter damage. Here in the northern area of South Carolina, we have mild winters. This year we had one week that the temps never reached above 40 degrees. It was only a week. But, that was enough. The damage was noticed on Dwarf Yaupon, Loropetalum, and Indian Hawthorn. The photos are the Yaupon. The Fix Deep Pruning needs to be done after last frost but before the heat sets in. Don't be afraid to cut deep. Established shrubs are very resilient. Most of cases, we take off all of the remaining foliage. Make sure that all cuts are clean. Use sharp and clean pruners. This is a great time to clean dead areas and debris from inside the shrub. Pull excess mulch and dead leaves from under the...