We're into long-shot territory here but as no-one else has any suggestions so far, it's worth asking. How deeply did you cultivate? There might be a hard compacted layer (called a pan in gardening text books) that's stopping the roots getting down past a certain level. Or even something buried like an old wall base (I said it was long shots). If you remove the one that's not growing at all, you could maybe have a dig down a foot or two and investigate.
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
I doubt there's a wall (in 2015 the whole estate was still fields), but it's likely there's a ton of clay (the soil is full of it).
I'd have thought there were enough nutrients in what I did to keep the plants alive and not dropping leaves, even if they didn't grow much, but I guess I might as well give it a go... Thanks!
So I dug them out and dug down a bit deeper and it's a rock hard layer of clay.
The roots of the laurels were still in a ball though, so they wouldn't have known anything about the clay, however I wonder if the clay just retains too much moisture so it's sat in a wet pool all the time.
The hole filled up with water from me rinsing the root balls and stayed there overnight.
That's your answer, right there in those pix. They'll cope with any amount of water, but not if there's no drainage. Nothing much will cope with that, unless it's shallow rooting and never reaching the clay to start with. Clay has to be properly amended before planting anything, even good old laurel. If the roots are tight and going round and round, they'll need teased out before you re plant them, but the main thing is to address that clay pan.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
There's no short cut. You'd have to add loads of organic matter for a year or more - depending on what you use and how much, to sort it out well enough. The alternative is a raised bed, so that you can get the conditions suitable enough to establish them, and then they should manage well enough.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
How deep is the clay layer? If the soil on top is reasonably deep, and not sopping with standing water, laurels should manage to survive. You can help ensure they are sitting above the saturated ground by planting them on a mound.
"What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbour".
I reckon it's a good foot and a half at least. The roots of the laurels weren't getting that low. I think I may have to get a tarp out and spend a day digging out all the soil to see what we've got there. The only laurel that is happy is slightly uphill from that hole, so I guess the water all drains that way.
Here's a photo of the location. Not sure why the website keeps flipping my photos on their side though. I dug our the three unhappy laurels and stuck them 9ut the front of the house in an effort to save them. They got 3 bags of manure between them and some bone meal, plus a good watering, so hopefully they'll be happy.
Posts
I'd have thought there were enough nutrients in what I did to keep the plants alive and not dropping leaves, even if they didn't grow much, but I guess I might as well give it a go... Thanks!
The roots of the laurels were still in a ball though, so they wouldn't have known anything about the clay, however I wonder if the clay just retains too much moisture so it's sat in a wet pool all the time.
The hole filled up with water from me rinsing the root balls and stayed there overnight.
They'll cope with any amount of water, but not if there's no drainage. Nothing much will cope with that, unless it's shallow rooting and never reaching the clay to start with. Clay has to be properly amended before planting anything, even good old laurel.
If the roots are tight and going round and round, they'll need teased out before you re plant them, but the main thing is to address that clay pan.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
The alternative is a raised bed, so that you can get the conditions suitable enough to establish them, and then they should manage well enough.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Here's a photo of the location. Not sure why the website keeps flipping my photos on their side though. I dug our the three unhappy laurels and stuck them 9ut the front of the house in an effort to save them. They got 3 bags of manure between them and some bone meal, plus a good watering, so hopefully they'll be happy.