Is it just me, or is trying to keep a mountain laurel happy basically like trying to please a finicky celebrity chef? One day it's thriving, the next day it looks like it's auditioning for a horror movie with all those leaf spots and dead branches. I've tried soil amendments, I've tried whispered sweet nothings, and even threatened it with replacing it with a rhododendron. Nothing.
Is there some top-secret mountain laurel handshake I need to know? Or is this just one of those plants that enjoys keeping its caretakers humble? Would love to hear if anyone's managed to keep theirs looking fabulous—or if we should all just invest in plastic shrubs and call it a day!
