I wouldn't bother with adding additional feed (lack of nutrients is definitely not the reason some of them have failed), just make sure they don't dry out and replace the dead ones in Autumn when watering becomes much less of an issue. Mulching is a very good idea, it will rot down and 'feed' the soil as well as helping retain moisture.
"What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbour".
Thanks everyone for the encouraging comments
and great advice!
For the time being I’ve laid some woodchip which
I had handy; will look into soil improvers…any suggestions? If it helps, I’ve
also got a compost heap on the go but not sure if that is quite ready yet…we
had originally used it for kitchen waste too however we ended up with a number
of unwanted visitors (mice) so have since limited it to just garden waste (and
coffee grind!)
Everyone else has pretty much said it all. I will just add that unless you have very poor drainage (to the extent that puddles sit around on top of the soil for a good while after it rains), or if the planting area wasn't prepared well so they're sitting in sumps, it's pretty hard to overwater plants growing in the ground in summer.
I would take out the ones that are completely brown (after contacting the seller with your pictures and of course depending on their response) and use it as an opportunity to see what things are like underneath the root ball - dry (bad), damp (good) or waterlogged (bad). Maybe fill up the holes left after you lift them with water and see how long it takes to drain.
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
Me again after almost 2 years...The yews have established and started filling out nicely in this time, however this spring I have started to notice the tips going brown. I've read some scare stories on this being a fungus, and others on this being frost damage. I don't suppose anyone can shed some light on what could be going on?
That's just the new growth. Yew tend to have those golden tips before they mature into the usual green or variegated leaf colour. Well done for looking after them, they look happy with all that new growth.
Thanks; That is quite a relief! On a side note, I had read that light pruning in April/July/Sept will encourage growth which I had done last year, but this year I completely forgot to do the light pruning in April. Do you think I am too late to give them a quick trim this week for the early spring slot?
Agree with @Obelixx you'd want the new growth to grow and then shape it. I find yew grows at a very good rate, and don't really think trimming encourages growth like it does for larger leaved hedging plants. But happy to be proven wrong on that one. I have four yew balls in the garden that look shaggy with all the new growth but won't touch then for another month to let the new growth settle.
I'm resurrecting this thread as I plan to plant another hedgerow of yews and was wondering when the best time to do so would be to give them the best start! I'll most likely be looking to get them as rootballs and in the region of 1.5m tall as I will need something fairly instant in terms of screening.
I've previously read that up to Dec time is ideal, however I'm wondering if I'm too late and should now wait until March?
Posts
Thanks everyone for the encouraging comments and great advice!
For the time being I’ve laid some woodchip which I had handy; will look into soil improvers…any suggestions? If it helps, I’ve also got a compost heap on the go but not sure if that is quite ready yet…we had originally used it for kitchen waste too however we ended up with a number of unwanted visitors (mice) so have since limited it to just garden waste (and coffee grind!)
Me again after almost 2 years...The yews have established and started filling out nicely in this time, however this spring I have started to notice the tips going brown. I've read some scare stories on this being a fungus, and others on this being frost damage. I don't suppose anyone can shed some light on what could be going on?
Thanks!
Julian
Firstly, happy new year!
I'm resurrecting this thread as I plan to plant another hedgerow of yews and was wondering when the best time to do so would be to give them the best start! I'll most likely be looking to get them as rootballs and in the region of 1.5m tall as I will need something fairly instant in terms of screening.
I've previously read that up to Dec time is ideal, however I'm wondering if I'm too late and should now wait until March?
Thanks!