I don't have all the answers champ. I know that that hedge was left to take over the garden by previous owners and I've tried to trim it back to an acceptable level so I can see my garden.
If I had all the answers I would t be in this forum.
trim the bottom back to the trunk and raise the base to as high as you can, then improve the ground underneath as they'll have sucked it dry of nutrients and only then underplant.
personally i'd rip them out and start again, if you're worried about privacy try a 6 foot panel fence with trellis on the top and grow climbers over it, it'll get to a covering height far faster than any hedge
Well there is hope yet as I am planning to level out the garden and build a retaining wall similar to that in the picture so this is definitely and option that I can pursue.
I reckon the left hand side of the garden will be raise a good 2/3ft
For a quick and instant tall boundary that takes up hardly any space, perhaps it would be best to take out the hedge and put in a fence. Then you can grow climbers up it if you want something green (although keeping them in good nick might be difficult if the dog would chew them).
As it is, the brown parts won't re-grow (leylandii and some other conifers won't grow from old wood) but the green parts at the top will keep on growing and will need regular trimming to stop them from turning into huge trees.
PS apart from the hedge, you have a nice garden there - lots of potential.
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
There are still green shoots from the middle of the hedge. The gaps in the bottom are from the obstacles that the tree was left to grow over and through (including a shed in the left corner)
The garden has massive potential lots of work needed. Have already had to take double figure amount of trees out and fill a 9ft pond 🙄
Perhaps best to keep on top of the trimming and see how it goes then. You might be able to train the green shoots sideways over the dead parts but I don't know how long it would take to get decent coverage.
Shame about the pond, but with a young child I guess it had to go. If the liner's still in place you could have a bog garden!
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
If the hedge is yours I'd get rid of it asap. It's never going to look any better than it does now if you cut the tops off first leaving 5 ft trunks to act as levers you can rock them back and forth and get the roots out (they're very shallow rooted) ... getting the roots out will mean that you won't have to work around the stumps and can replenish the soil and either plant a new hedge or erect a fence and trellis and cover it with climbers like clematis (alpina and viticella types will get going quickly) .
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
As the little one grows the garden can adapt ... you could start off with a bog garden ... that would attracts frogs and newts just as a pond would. I spent most of my life on farms etc and have always found it harder to keep the dogs out of the ponds than the children
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Posts
If I had all the answers I would t be in this forum.
I reckon the left hand side of the garden will be raise a good 2/3ft
The garden has massive potential lots of work needed. Have already had to take double figure amount of trees out and fill a 9ft pond 🙄
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Don't worry I've ripped the liner out of there. May be one day I can have the pond 😂
I'm not starting the levelling of the garden for a couple of months so will what happens in the growing season.
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.