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Wildlife hedge question

Peter Wright 790Peter Wright 790 Posts: 1
in Problem solving
I planted some wildlife hedge whips - mainly hawthorn, blackthorn and possibly some rosa rugosa - a few years ago.  Due to my poor pruning, the hedge is more like a collection of saplings with fairly sparse leaf cover than the thick hedge I was looking for.  If I cut the sapling trunks down to ground level, will they generate new growth from the bottom or will I just be killing the plants if I do this? Thanks.

Posts

  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,445
    they'll shoot. Blackthorn also suckers


    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • nutcutletnutcutlet Posts: 27,445
    but I wouldn't go quite to ground level, leave some visible growing points


    In the sticks near Peterborough
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    Wait a week or 3 until you see new shoots coming or leaf buds opening then, assuming heavy frosts are not expected, trim the stems back to just above a low shoot or bud and give them a generous handful of pelleted chicken manure per metre.
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • TopsoiledTopsoiled Posts: 113
    Lay the hedge - it will shoot from the cut and along the trunks. However I suspect it hasn’t had enough water since you planted it, so try mulching and watering and see if that helps. I used horse manure (fresh). Mine was thick after about 2 or 3 years.
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