Were they brownish and sickly since spring, Kazzah? It may be a delayed reaction to the severe frosts of last winter. Feed them lightly, and watch out for gooey stuff oozing from the branches. If oozing occurs, I would cut the trunk or branches below the oozing, leaving a slanted stump to shed water. At some point, you should see new rosettes of leaves coming off the trunk, or from just below ground, and you can cut the trunk down to just above where the new growth is coming from.