Bay tree help

Afternoon all,

Ive got two bay trees twisted together, one seems to have gone nuts the other not so much. What would/should i do with these two.

The picturs with my hands on the plant are the other tree thats twisted around the larger one.

Also what should i do with the larger one. Seems to have stems all over the place

Kind regards
James

 

Sort them out next spring and prune them and dig them up to separate them and replant. Add perlite it should be incorporated into the soil to help drainage and lets air into the roots.

 

Hi they look fine to me only look a year old , what shape if any do you want to grow them ? You will need to keep sheltered spot over the winter as they are so young get tougher as they gain the years ..

John Ines no 3 is best for them , not all purpose compost holds too much water at the roots over winter may cause rotting , nuts made me laugh when I saw the photo

 

Ideally a ball shape. Should i not be worried about the difference in length or do i jist clip the top in spring?

 

I take it you are twisting one around the other to create a spiral type stem?

 

Thats how i purchased it. I've been away for a couple of weeks and come back on one of them has grown alot the other not so much.

I just wondered what i do with it

 

Are you sure its two plants or is it one plant with two stems twisted together?

You say the larger one has stems all over the place, I can only see one stem.

Edit, Oh yes I can see one side shoot forming.

 

Tbh not entirely sure if its two plants or two stems together.

Anyway to tell other than digging it out and checking

 

If you just want a ball shape I'd be inclined to cut the longest stem back about 2ins shorter than the height you want the ball, that will encourage side shoots that you can in turn trim back to create the ball over a period of time.

I wouldn't worry about the twisted bit.

 

Its not at the height yet only about a metre so far, so do i just leave it?

 

I think I'd probably just leave it
not sure what you are aiming for, possibly a ball on a clear stem?

If that is the case I'd consider getting rid of the lower stem that is twined around the other.
You're aiming for a bush that you can ultimately prune to shape, so just remove what is growing outside the ball you envisage,I assume at the moment that is virtually nothing.

 

This takes time.
If you have a multistemmed bay that you would like to be a standard with a twisty stem, strip off the lower leaves leaving enough at the top for the plant to grow.
Then plait the stems. Tie loosely if necessary. Eventually you can remove the ties once the plaits are stable. This can take months or years.
After several years, the stems will fuse together to form a trunk.
Pick off the lower leaves you don't want as they grow. Any suckers can be woven in or removed as required.
The plant will always be happier in the ground but you can do it with a potted bay.
Don't remove too many leaves at first and don't expect the length of the trunk to be the required height straight away. The trunk will get longer with time.
I have one in the ground for about 30 years. It has a nice twisty trunk if you get under the too low canopy and look at it. I've become lazy about shaping it over the years, but it's there if I ever get the urge to take the secateurs to it.