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Weeding around my yew hedge

jozillajozilla Posts: 5
in Plants
I cleared an area to plant a long line of yew hedge up to 40cm high. It’s been nearly 2 years and so far they seem to be thriving. But this year a load of what I believe are hyacinth leaves have grown up on mass in and around my hedge. I’ve tried gently prising them out but the bulbs are so deep down and mingled with the yew hedge roots I daren’t dig too hard in case I damage the hedge. Will they impede the growth of my yew hedge? Or can anyone recommend a way to get rid of them? 
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  • AnniDAnniD Posts: 12,585
    Hi @jo_willard , l think from your description they may be Spanish bluebells. Is it possible for you to post a photo please?
  • jozillajozilla Posts: 5
    edited March 2019

  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    They look like Spanish bluebells to me.  They are a pain in the bum to get rid of. If you can't dig down to the bulbs, pull off the leaves as soon as you can to gradually weaken them, and if/when they flower, pull of the flowers before they set seed.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • jozillajozilla Posts: 5
    Thanks for your suggestion, I’ll pull up the leaves as suggested and hope they die back eventually. They’re frustrating that’s for sure.
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    Good luck!
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • AnniDAnniD Posts: 12,585
    They are a pain, and can bulk up pretty quickly.  If you can, get out as many as possible,  l know from experience that they go down pretty deep!
    Bit more info :
    https://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/solve-problems/how-do-i-get-rid-of-invasive-spanish-bluebells/
  • DampGardenManDampGardenMan Posts: 1,054
    From what I've been told, it'll take seven years to get rid of them! As well as the ones you can see there are lots of seeds in the soil doing their thing and waiting to come up in future years.

    I'm fighting the same battle, year two of the Seven Years' War for me :smile:
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    I'm on about year 20! There were lots and lots all over the garden to start with, some are in amongst the roots of trees and shrubs that I don't want to disturb, and some years I've been less rigorous about having a go at them.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • jozillajozilla Posts: 5
    Thanks for all your comments. I've just been reading about crushing their leaves and starving the plant of photosynthesis or something... (sorry - can't find the exact article now). Do you think this has the same effect of just ripping out the leaves as they appear.
  • AnniDAnniD Posts: 12,585
    edited March 2019
    @jozilla This could have been what you were reading (from the National Trust site).
    1. Bluebells can take years to recover after footfall damage. If a bluebell’s leaves are crushed, they die back from lack of food as the leaves cannot photosynthesise. 
     There was also something l read about applying gel weedkiller to the leaves, but l am not sure how successful that would be tbh.
    There is also this old thread on here that I've found
    https://forum.gardenersworld.com/discussion/993941/spanish-bluebell-takeover
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