New privet hedge

[Squaredy]

1 hour ago, sime42 said:

They're very thirsty as well as hungry. Though aren't all hedging like that? Anyway, from a trimmers perspective you don't really want a border in front of the hedge! A nice plain bit of lawn makes the job a whole lot easier, especially the clearing up.  

 

 

Yes I have a border next to my privet hedge and I put two plum trees in, and they have never done well.  I tried putting daffs in on the other side in full sun but they died off in two seasons.  Certainly difficult to grow much next to privet.  Many times I have thought about changing it to something else.  Yew would be lovely, but I guess takes an age to establish.

[Stere]

They seem to extend a dense   shallow mat of fiberous roots more than many other hedges like beech etc

 

Box does also.

 

Think that whats takes all the moisture and nutrients

 

Some kind of root barrier may help....

Edited June 30, 2021 by Stere

[openspaceman]

18 minutes ago, Squaredy said:

Yew would be lovely, but I guess takes an age to establish.

I don't think so, it may only extend a few inches a year unlike privet's 3 foot but it's not that bad. I talked with John McHardy at Longleat when he was planting the yew maze and he said it would be established in 12 years but I have never been back to see it.

[Stere]

Yew can grow fast especially when young and untrimmed leader can do probalby near a ft a year.

 

Dunno were the "yew is very slow growing" myth comes from, think its coz as a mature trimmed hedge its annual grow is  often abit less than others but thats not a bad thing....

 

 

 

 

[Lowestoft Firewood]

Sure I read advice once, for box and privet to regularly trim the roots back with a sharp spade, but cant remember where I read it.

 

[Stubby]

8 hours ago, Squaredy said:

  Yew would be lovely, but I guess takes an age to establish.

Yew grows pretty quick . I used to cut it once a year on the big posh estates and houses and keep the clippings for  French pharmaceutical company who used them to make cancer treatment drugs . 

[sime42]

Yes I have a border next to my privet hedge and I put two plum trees in, and they have never done well.  I tried putting daffs in on the other side in full sun but they died off in two seasons.  Certainly difficult to grow much next to privet.  Many times I have thought about changing it to something else.  Yew would be lovely, but I guess takes an age to establish.

I think you might be pleasantly surprised how quick yew can be actually. I'm sure Monty talked about it on gardener's world once: saying that they can grow pretty fast when young.

[sime42]

I think you might be pleasantly surprised how quick yew can be actually. I'm sure Monty talked about it on gardener's world once: saying that they can grow pretty fast when young.

That was rather superfluous. I probably should have read the previous posts first.