My Kaka beak plant is about 2 metres across and 1 metre high and has had leaves all over it,but now the last 10-20 cm of some of the branches the leaves have died off. Does it need more water in summer to stop this or is it something else.I am in Kaitaia which is very warm at the moment.I can't see any obvious bugs on it.
wheelz,
Jan 31, 5:39am
x1
Everything seems to want to eat these plants - 2-spotted mite, broom-mite, slugs & snails, borer, leaf-miner, and thrips. Some too small to see with the naked eye. An annual pruning is good to remove diseased or dead bits, plus take off one third of the branches to force sturdy new growth on the old wood. Helps rejuvinate an otherwise an often straggly and leggy bush. I have found that this is not a long lived shrub! The white form even harder!
clivehell,
Jan 31, 6:51am
Thanks for that wheelz.This one is red,and I have just bought a white one.It is not very big and does not look 100% at the moment. I like them as the flowers are unusual.
wheelz,
Jan 31, 7:15am
Yes. I love them too, have had many over the years, but they all seem to get leggy despite pruning and seem to succumb to the hosts of bugs that like to feast on them. Somehow they seem reluctant to regenerate from the base. Five years is all about I can get out of a specimen.
breness,
Aug 11, 10:52am
Enjoy your Kakabeaks.Just for your information the red ones were nearly wiped out in Cyclone Bola I understand so we are very lucky to still have them. From my experience the white one is a sturdier variety than the red. Both exquisite whatever.
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