New Laurel Hedge Issues - Help Please!!

Hi All,

Hope someone can give me some help/advice re. a laurel hedge.

I planted a laurel hedge in late autumn last year, 30 trees on either side of my West facing back garden. Pot grown 6ft high plants, in reasonable well drained soil, with bonemeal and slow release fertilizer in each hole. There are 10 trees on the right of the garden and 20 on the left. orientation means that the right side (South facing) has full sun all day and the left (North facing) gets some sun at different times of the day but also lots of shade.

So what's the issue? Well the 20 trees on the North facing aspect are very deep green, look very healthy and have started to grow vigorously with lots and lots of healthy new growth. Those on the South facing aspect aren't doing anywhere near as well. They're a lot paler in the leaf, aren't growing anywhere near as vigorously and have some yellow/dropped leaves. It's been very dry here so I've been soaking both sides regularly and have applied soluble feed to both sides - they are growing but not nearly as well. I've attached some pics.

Anyone got any idea what's going on and what about it?

Many thanks, Steve

 

Photosynthesis inbalance
The clue is in the name

 

Hi,

Thanks for your reply. Wouldn't more light encourage more growth? The North facing trees get less light so less energy for photosynthesis?

 

I would stop feeding them, both sides. They don’t need regular feeding and keep doing so can cause problems especially if they are already stressed, which the south facing ones may be. It’s probably the combination of dry and wind which we have been having. larger plants always take longer to settle in and recover from transplant shock.

Make sure you give them a really good soaking, when watering. A couple of watering cans per plant, or five minutes with the hose per plant once a week should be fine. If not already done, then a mulch after a good soak will have trap in some of the moisture and slow evaporation.

Laurels do have periods when they loose more leaves as part of their normal annual cycle, so it may be that your south facing ones are going into this early due to the heat and dry weather. They don’t drop all like a deciduous tree but will loose some, from memory it’s usually early summer

 

I would add that perhaps you could widen the border, the grass is competing with the roots of the laurels, it's looking quite green from the feed you have given the hedge!