HELP! Is my Laurel Hedge dead?

MactheKnife90

Hi I need some help on what people think is wrong with my Laurel Hedge. I have no knowledge of gardening so help is much appreciated. I have attached photos of the hedge which is about 15 months old. Has it died or why has it turned this colour and basically hasn't grown since it was planted???

Thank you

MactheKnife90

MactheKnife90 wrote: »

Hi I need some help on what people think is wrong with my Laurel Hedge. I have no knowledge of gardening so help is much appreciated. I have attached photos of the hedge which is about 15 months old. Has it died or why has it turned this colour and basically hasn't grown since it was planted???

Thank you

A

Doctors room ghost

MactheKnife90 wrote: »

Hi I need some help on what people think is wrong with my Laurel Hedge. I have no knowledge of gardening so help is much appreciated. I have attached photos of the hedge which is about 15 months old. Has it died or why has it turned this colour and basically hasn't grown since it was planted???

Thank you

No photos

MactheKnife90

MactheKnife90 wrote: »

Hi I need some help on what people think is wrong with my Laurel Hedge. I have no knowledge of gardening so help is much appreciated. I have attached photos of the hedge which is about 15 months old. Has it died or why has it turned this colour and basically hasn't grown since it was planted???

Thank you

Ok it won't allow me to upload photos but the hedge is more yellow than green and is fairly sparse

Doctors room ghost

MactheKnife90 wrote: »

Ok it won't allow me to upload photos but the hedge is more yellow than green and is fairly sparse

How long is she planted and was it bare root or pots.is there much grass around the base and is it getting much light

MactheKnife90

Doctors room ghost wrote: »

How long is she planted and was it bare root or pots.is there much grass around the base and is it getting much light

I bought the house with it planted 15 months ago. There is grass around the base not great quality grass either mind you but high grass around the base. It gets light from first think until 2-3pm. Fairly sure it was bare root planted.

Ps boards is saying the photo is too large to attach

Doctors room ghost

MactheKnife90 wrote: »

I bought the house with it planted 15 months ago. There is grass around the base not great quality grass either mind you but high grass around the base. It gets light from first think until 2-3pm. Fairly sure it was bare root planted.

Ps boards is saying the photo is too large to attach

If you can strim back the grass around the base but be careful not to hit the base of the laurels as they don’t like that.then give them a good watering.then go to your local agri supplier and get a bag of 7-6-17 and give it a good dose of that around the base.cut your grass aswell and give the lawn a good shake of it aswell and leave the grass and hedge alone then for 2 week before you cut the grass again.
The bag of 7-6-17 is roughly 25 euro.be careful lifting it cos the fukr is heavy.use a bucket to fill it into and shake it out by hand wearing gloves.make sure you put it out evenly on lawn and give the hedge a strong shake of it.
It’s rocket fuel for plants.you won’t know the lawn after a fortnight and it doesn’t force grass growth too much just feeds it well and it will be Heineken bottle green
Hedge should thrive from a good dose of it

MactheKnife90

Doctors room ghost wrote: »

If you can strim back the grass around the base but be careful not to hit the base of the laurels as they don’t like that.then give them a good watering.then go to your local agri supplier and get a bag of 7-6-17 and give it a good dose of that around the base.cut your grass aswell and give the lawn a good shake of it aswell and leave the grass and hedge alone then for 2 week before you cut the grass again.
The bag of 7-6-17 is roughly 25 euro.be careful lifting it cos the fukr is heavy.use a bucket to fill it into and shake it out by hand wearing gloves.make sure you put it out evenly on lawn and give the hedge a strong shake of it.
It’s rocket fuel for plants.you won’t know the lawn after a fortnight and it doesn’t force grass growth too much just feeds it well and it will be Heineken bottle green
Hedge should thrive from a good dose of it

You're a Legend. Thanks for all that info it's my first house and still picking up tips on stuff like this. Fair play. I've attached photos now to see what you think.

Doctors room ghost

MactheKnife90 wrote: »

You're a Legend. Thanks for all that info it's my first house and still picking up tips on stuff like this. Fair play. I've attached photos now to see what you think.

Yeah she looks a bit starved I’d say.its competing with the grass.try that and give the hedge a good shake. If that’s not enough you could kill off the grass around the base in a neat strip and put down the anti weed mats and cover it with bark mulch to remove the competition grass but try the 7-6-17 first and see will she come good with that. I do mine twice a year with it normally.
Cut the grass short and give it the shake then and leave it for 2 week before cutting again. If you are bagging the grass when you cut every time it leaves the lawn hungry as you are always taking away the nutrients.a good feed of 7-6-17 will be good for it and don’t be afraid to cut it without the bag the odd time later in the year or mulch it if you’re mower can do mulching

my3cents

I'd wonder if someone cutting the grass up close to the laurels hadn't strimmed the bark of the bottom of them?

Lumen

If you get rid of a strip of grass 50cm either side they should grow much faster.

Best way is to dig the turf off, that way the level drops and you can mulch it properly.

After a couple of years you can let the grass grow back (at that stage you'll probably want to slow the laurel down).

MactheKnife90

Hi lads. Here is a wee update on the laurel hedge I was on about a few weeks back finally got a chance to get everything done. Put plenty of Fertilizer on so hopefully now she kicks off.

Thanks

my3cents

MactheKnife90 wrote: »

Hi lads. Here is a wee update on the laurel hedge I was on about a few weeks back finally got a chance to get everything done. Put plenty of Fertilizer on so hopefully now she kicks off.

Thanks

OH DEAR!

That is not how you put fertiliser on anything except a tombstone.

Pick up as much as you can from around the plants and flick the rest around in the grass.

Fertiliser left like that around the stems will burn them and that concentration will damage the roots.

Lumen

Is that fertiliser piled around the base of each plant?

How much did you use?

MactheKnife90

my3cents wrote: »

OH DEAR!

That is not how you put fertiliser on anything except a tombstone.

Pick up as much as you can from around the plants and flick the rest around in the grass.

Fertiliser left like that around the stems will burn them and that concentration will damage the roots.

I was advised to put a good shake around them I thought I was doing well ha.

How long have I got to remove it before it starts doing damage? Gone now for the evening.

MactheKnife90

Lumen wrote: »

Is that fertiliser piled around the base of each plant?

How much did you use?

I used a handful around each plant?

my3cents

If you only used a handful then just flick the fertiliser away from the base of the stems and spread out up to 60cm from the plant and not concentrated in one place.

What did you use btw,

MactheKnife90

my3cents wrote: »

If you only used a handful then just flick the fertiliser away from the base of the stems and spread out up to 60cm from the plant and not concentrated in one place.

What did you use btw,

7-6-17 I used. The plants are quite close together that's the only thing and I have already given the grass a shake so should I pick it up or what?

looksee

Ha! a handful! you tipped the bucket didn't you Seriously, get a lot of that off, and make sure its not against the stems. You should be able to see soil through the granules. Scoop it onto a flat container, let any bits of soil dry off, you will be able to use it again.

MactheKnife90

looksee wrote: »

Ha! a handful! you tipped the bucket didn't you Seriously, get a lot of that off, and make sure its not against the stems. You should be able to see soil through the granules. Scoop it onto a flat container, let any bits of soil dry off, you will be able to use it again.

Thanks. Maybe I have big hands haha. Is it ok to wait until tomorrow evening to do this if is it something needs done asap?

PS No gardening experience at all obviously

my3cents

MactheKnife90 wrote: »

7-6-17 I used. The plants are quite close together that's the only thing and I have already given the grass a shake so should I pick it up or what?

That would be strong stuff (unlike something like bonemeal) so definitely get a good bit of it picked up.

Lumen

I think you made the normal mistake of buying your way to a solution. You really need to get rid of that grass around the plants, the fertiliser is secondary.

Fertiliser application is supposed to be carefully measured, e.g. 30g per sqm but depends on product, and spread evenly. The laurel roots radiate from the base of the stem, so are under the grass, starved of water, air and nutrients.

With the grass in place you're just going to fertilise the grass and possibly make the problem worse.

Get your hands dirty! :pac:

MactheKnife90

Is this also too much on the lawn???

my3cents

MactheKnife90 wrote: »

Is this also too much on the lawn???

I would guess at least twice as much as you needed.

looksee

If it rains you it will be too late. I'd be inclined to quickly pick up a good bit o it if you can tonight.

Lumen

If all else fails, you can probably wash it through the soil with regular application of a hose.

MactheKnife90

Lumen wrote: »

If all else fails, you can probably wash it through the soil with regular application of a hose.

Ok so I got most of it picked up. Should I stick a hose around the plants for a while now or leave it???

MactheKnife90

Done as much as I could

my3cents

Hedge fine lawn no so much.

If you have a rotary mower with a grass box you could pick up a lot of the grannuals on the lawn with that - although getting a bit late in the day now.

Balmed Out

I planted the same hedge nearly three tears and have the same black marks on some shriveling leaves but plenty of growth otherwise. Im thinking the cold spell....

Jeju

I had the same issue with my laurel hedge a few years back when it was the same age. It never had grass as competition as I removed it all before planting and kept it weeded. What happens in the original picture is normal enough for laurel at this time of year as it prepares for fresh leaves and growth. You were as well leave it alone maybe with a small bit of fertilizer or compost.