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appearance of white color on shrub leaves #913886

Asked August 13, 2025, 1:08 PM EDT

What is cause of appearance of white areas on hydrangea and neighboring azalea leaves?

Charles County Maryland

Expert Response

This bleached look appears to be phytotoxicity, which is plant tissue damage from chemical exposure. The chemical could be a pesticide (even if it was used as directed; was a fungicide used to try to combat the leaf spot symptoms? or was an herbicide sprayed on the vine growing through the plant?), cleaning agent (was the siding or a nearby window or decking recently cleaned?), or even hot water from a garden hose that wasn't flushed out before watering plants or hosing-off nearby structures.

Although the leaf injury can be an eyesore, such damage is temporary (as the plant will shed its leaves for autumn) and not concerning since it doesn't threaten plant health. Leaves can't heal from damage, but the symptoms should not worsen much once the plant isn't exposed to any more of that material. It's possible the pale, bleached-looking spots will dry out and turn brown as the injured leaf tissue dies or gets "sunburned," but that's a natural progression of that kind of damage and won't be concerning. You can trim off individual leaves if it's too bothersome in that case, but it's not necessary.

Miri

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