Copper Beech Hedge - Losing Autumn Leaves

I have a copper beech hedge which usually keeps it's copper leaves all the way through to spring. For some reason this year it seems to be losing far more leaves than usual and is almost bare in patchesl. Does anyone know why this could be? Could it be because of the warm temperatures we are having? Could it be because it is now too tall (read somewhere anything over 8 foot may not keep its leaves)? Could it be because my neighbour absolutely skinned the other side of our hedge in early summer and has damaged it? Any ideas would be appreciated.

It is overgrown (12 ft tall) and we are planning on giving it a major prune in the next month plus planting some additional hedging plants to provide more depth that our neighbour can't touch!

 

Hi Steph

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Its a easy one , its because of the height it losing its leaves, when you reduce it it will keep them again next year.

What are you thinking of mixing in the hedge as it would have to be a tough one as planting at this late stage you will have to keep watering through the summer next year for it to get established

Spruce

 

We have had the same problem for the last two winters and it is happening again to our beech hedge and have put it down to dryness at the roots because there has not been enough water getting to the roots due to the dry weather we have had in the summer months so our leaves have been going crisp these last couple of weeks and now we are getting the strong winds the leaves are all getting blown offWhen we go up to Derbyshire at this time of the year and walk across to Hope and see the beech hedges used as wind breaks in some of the gardens and are much taller than ours{over 8ft} they are all perfect with no leaf loss at all so we assume those bushes get more rain fall on their roots throughout the year.We have had our hedge ten years annd it has only been these last couple of years as I said that we have had the problem

Mr Kandy always does the work on our hedge in September time never in the winter.

 

Thanks Spruce. We're just going to add a partial second row of copper beech to the existing hedge to fill in the places where the hedge is gappy. The original hedge was planted at a fairly good ratio but there are places where the original probably failed and wasn't replaced.

We're planning on pruning and planting in the next month as long as it doesn't get too cold. Am I right in thinking this is the right time of year to do the major work on copper beech hedging.

 

Hi Steph

February is the best month to hard prune beech so leave a while yet , with planting in to a establised hedge I would probaly not do barerooted and if you can £££ plant pot grown, it will help them establish quicker you will have to make sure they get enough light and water next year or the older established bushes will swamp them out , if you are planting a new row , dig out a trench a good 12 inches deep and at least the same in width as well and enrich the soil with compost , keep well watered over the summer

Spruce

 

Hi Steph, as Spruce says February is the best time for hard pruning a beech hedge...but don't forget that an annual clipping in August or therabouts is what makes the hedge hang on to the leaves until the new leaves come in Spring.

 

That gives me this weekend free then! Why is February the best time for hard pruning as I was under the impression that any time between November and March was okay? I'll be planting a second row just to save the neighbour hacking at the new hedglings so is it really worth nearly three times the cost for pot grown over bare root?

Plus how far away from the original hedge should I plant the new row? I was planning on about 16" or so as obviously the roots of the original hedge will be in the way.

Thanks for the advice so far - its much appreciated. And sorry for bombarding you with more questions!

 

Hi Hows you ???

Answer to your questions and this is my take on it others may sugest somthing else .

Why hard prune February: Beech doesnt realy like frost pockets harsh winds , better choice would be Hornbeam . Sooo I think hopfully most of the harsh winter is over with and the least damage from the cold (shortest time frame) on the hard pruning ie the cuts that you have made on the branches plus its still in its dormant state in February , occasionaly you can get die back when you prune and doing it February gives it the last chance as sap will be moving up the stems in March making the buds swell.

If planting a new row and you will do what I sugest ie dig out trench incorporate compost etc bare root will be the best choice but personaly I would try and increase to 24 inches rather than 16 if you can if not realy look after them for the next two seasons with water this year and next year water and a feed in the spring and give old and new a good mulch to keep the moisture in

I hope and I have tried to explain some times its difficult to write it all down , so anything else just ask again


Spruce

 

Thanks Spruce. The current hedge is quite deep so I think I can probably extend the 16" distance to the new row a bit as there will be a lot of space available once we've pruned the depth. I was going to go for a 100-125 cm height for the new plants, the theory being they'll be more established than shorter cheaper plants plus give us a quicker result. Is that sensible or would you suggest an 80-100 cm plant?

We know that by giving it a major major short back and sides it's going to take a couple of years for the original hedge to fully recover but we're prepared for a year or two of bareness - anything to get it back under control so we can keep it in trim properly in the future.

My husband was a bit concerned about starting to massacre the hedge - the first cut is always scary! With regard to the depth would you go right back to the trunk, 12" length or how deep (bearing in mind it's huge). We had to take a couple of plants back to the trunk three years ago and they recovered beautifully with thick growth, but that seems really drastic for the whole length which is probably something like 20 meters.

Must admit I'm bad at mulching!!! I have been putting weed control fabric and bark down over the rest of the borders in the garden (mostly to save weeding but also to protect roots etc). Is it worth doing that around the new hedge plants for a lazy gardener? I can cope with watering and feeding!

 

I would not be pruning the hedge in winter. However, if the hedge is a young one, it could look bare in patches because of the height. Beech trees lose their leaves but hedges don't. I kept a seep hose under my hedges for five years and the beech has thickened up nicely now. If your neighbour wants to prune his side quite close to the trunks, I don't think it will matter. I like to keep mine fairly narrow. They are planted in single rows about 2 ft apart. The hedges needed 200 trees and I used mixed copper and green beech. The hedge is seven years old now, plus the year or so when I got the seedlings bare rooted.

 

Hi Steph
Have you thought about getting whips instead more ££ but quicker , I have always gone for the cheepest with a hedge I think small plants get away quicker in the long run (beech is so slow ) , just go for it with the pruning but try and get it done over two days dont leave it a week or two then go back .

Take your time with first one they just follow suit , my brother gardener uses a piece of ply wood for the shape of the hedge and moves it a long as he is cutting it saves loads of time

Show us some photos I feel like your own personal gardening expert

Spruce