can anyone tell me how fast yew will grow

to creat a hedge.
Here are our measurements the plants are between 18"- 2ft tall and we need them to grow to about 3ft.

any ideas on how long they will take?

 

Hi Amme,

I would suggest that the yew will take at least two growing seasons to reach your desired height of 3ft.

This estimate is based on the yew having enough water through the growing season, and getting sufficient light, etc. Yew can put on around 6 inches of growth in a year, which is less growth than that of some conifers (leyllandii ).

To create a thick hedge, I would suggest once the plants have established this season, and for them to grow in a more uniformed fashion, set up a string line, at the height of the lower yew bushes, and trim the tops off those that are above the string. (A compromise may have to be reached on the exact height of the string, as taking too much off one plant may hurt it rather than help it.) I would take the excess growth off with secateurs.

If you have any more problems, perhaps a photo or two would help diagnosis!

Hope this Helps!

 

that does help thankyou. i'll forward it on ot hubby

 

would love to send a photo but we havnt yet bought the plants, hubby wants to make sure he is doing the right thing before he spends his money LOL!!!!
He is one of these instant gardeners i a afraid and wants an instant hedge, where i have told him if he really wants a hedge he is gong to have to be patient or think of something else like a fence.

 

I would definitely recommend using Yew, it may not be the fastest growing hedge, but it will give the nicest evergreen hedge, in my opinion.

One of the great things with Yew is you can prune it very hard if it gets out of control, as it will recover. Once a conifer has gone brown at the bottom of the bush, it never recovers or regrows.

When you are planting, like with most things the preparation is the most important thing to do. If the plants have the right stuff around them, then 3ft will be easily reached!

Hope this Helps!

 

great thankkyou. i was going to put down blood, fish and bonemeal down for the roots and mix it into the ground and then i have some home made compost from my compost bin that i was also going to put down, the compost has been mixed with horse muck so should be good stuff, what do you reckon, would this be a good enough start

 

I rekon closer to 3 or four years.

 

Amme,

I would advise against cutting the upwards tips off until they have reached the height desired-they will grow more slowly upwards if you do that.

 

I just happen to have read this earlier this evening in "Creating a Garden" by Mary Keen;

"...yew and box will grow from 20 to 30cm a year with proper treatment. Planted in a well-prepared trench, watered in dry periods and fed with a balanced fertilizer like Vitax Q4 in spring and again at midsummer, they should do well. If they are also given booster doses of high nitrogen in the form of dried blood at three week intervals they will put on phenomenal growth."

So with the height you're thinking of buying them at, you may not have to wait too long!

 

"If they are also given booster doses of high nitrogen in the form of dried blood at three week intervals they will put on phenomenal growth."

Is this why they are in churchyards?

It isn't just the height but also the bushyness which wil only come with regular clipping of the sides from the start.

Yews 18" to 2ft are very expensive and would, in my opinion, be harder to establish than the smaller ones usually sold for hedging.

 

OMG i have got my work cut out then s00k. Can you tell me if this is a good idea or if you are not supposed to do it?

when they arrive i was going to put them in quite a few buckets of water with liquid plant food in to give them a start. would this be o.,????



(Yews 18" to 2ft are very expensive and would, in my opinion, be harder to establish than the smaller ones usually sold for hedging.) wish i had known that before i bought them they are arriving either today or tomorrow. oh well. we have got 100 for about £180 so i had better look after them

 

I think you got a bit of a bargain there! £1.80 per plant!! Well Done!

I can't see there been a problem with giving the roots a soak in water before planting, I would be cautious as to how much liquid plant food I would add, as I wouldn't want to burn any of the exposed roots. I would add very little if any.

If you can't plant straight away, and want to wait till the weekend, don't leave them covered in water for too long, as they will start to drown. I would make sure that all exposed roots are covered, esp at night or in the sun or windy location, as they would dry the roots out or hurt the plants in some way.

I've covered the root balls up by stacking them all in one place, then opening black sacks or similar and covering the outer ones. Perhaps if you have some ton sacs you could place some in each, which would do a similar job.

Good Luck Planting!

Hope this Helps!

 

thanks plant1star.
I cant plant them til saturday, i have put them into water and covered the roots. how long should i leave them in the water for?

I have got some black bin bags or tarpaulin so i can cover them over with that.

 

Looks like you got the end of season bare-rooted plants.

Not letting the roots dry out is NOT the same as leaving them in water. Max time in water 3hrs I would say but have done it beyond 1 hr.

Have you got the ground prepared?

What Planting distance? What lenth of hedging ? Single or double row (usually single for yew I think)?

Planting 100 isn't a quick job. You will need to put in canes to hold them up or tie into a wires strung between two posts, helps get a nice straight line

I would use bonemeal dug in around each plant, two or three handfulls

Time taken over preparation and planting is repaid in the long-term