Holly Bushes Brown Not Green

Question

I planted 36 Holly bushes last fall and most of them have brown leaves on them. I don’t think the plants are dead. There is some green at the bottom of some plants. Why did this happen and is there anything I can do to the plant? Thank you.

Answer 1

This could be attributed to scorch, from unusually cold weather conditions, or transplant shock. Since there is already some signs of life (regrowth at the bottom), I would prune it back by 1/3 to rid the shrub of the dead growth, especially if you didn't do so when you transplanted them.