Well if the plants are dead they will have to come out. The easiest way to see if the soil is poisoned is to grow some annual bedding plants in it or even scatter a packet of two of seed on it. That way you are not going to the expense of large shrubs only to see them die again.
The cost of proving the soil is poisoned is prohibitive, and proving who actually did it near on impossible.
Try a large packet of Phacelia tanacetifolia as used for green manure. If they don't grow you really have a problem.
Well if the plants are dead they will have to come out. The easiest way to see if the soil is poisoned is to grow some annual bedding plants in it or even scatter a packet of two of seed on it. That way you are not going to the expense of large shrubs only to see them die again.
The cost of proving the soil is poisoned is prohibitive, and proving who actually did it near on impossible.
Try a large packet of Phacelia tanacetifolia as used for green manure. If they don't grow you really have a problem.
That's sound advice. I've been thinking along those lines myself. I was literally going to transplant some weeds into the area to see if they survived. But I just googled Phacelia tanacetifolia and it sounds ideal.
I'm a bit worried of detrimental effects on bees etc., if the plants do grow but suck up any remnants of rootkiller/whatever may be still in the soil despite my best efforts to rinse it out.
@cool_breeze I have just read your thread. Hebes have died by the hundreds over winter, something that has not happened for many years.Glyphosate is used to kill weeds but it is either not as strong now or plants are developing a resistance to it. It was expensive to buy so if it was used in a high concentrate he is the one that is out of pocket. It 's use is also banned in parts of the UK.
I have worked as a Gardener for 24 years. My latest garden is a new build garden on heavy clay.
Is it your CCTV camera? If so, just position it to cover the affected areas, and make a show of doing it when they're out there if possible. You could also make a point of saying that you think someone is coming in and using weedkiller and maybe they should watch their plants too. If nothing else, they might be wary in future - if, and I stress if, it's them that's causing the damage, and they think they could get caught. If they don't see you adjusting the camera, then you can hopefully catch them or anyone else who is causing the damage.
Either way- you'll find out the truth.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
My mother in-law lost two Hebes this winter and they look exactly like the picture you posted, a third looked done in but now has some decent growth after a careful prune.
If it was weedkiller the neighbour would need multiple heavy doses across a period of time to kill a Hebe that size, especially a shop bought one.
The plant that was by the door (in a pot) looks like a hebe and a lot of people have lost them this last winter due to the early hard cold snap,
That's exactly what the guy in the garden centre said. So I came home and was looking up frost damage, but didn't come across anything that described the whole plant just suddenly going all brittle. Do you know if the whole plant just dies completely like that?
and a plant in a pot would have been more vulnerable, so the neighbour might not be responsible for that one (although they might). I can't tell what your other affected plants were though. It does seem odd that a vindictive neighbour would target only a few plants.
I am keeping an open mind. Life will certainly be simpler if there's an altogether more innocent explanation 😀
Yes, sudden very cold weather could entirely kill off a hebe. Particularly in a pot where the rootball could get frozen.
I was just reading back and I wonder if the conifers that your neighbour planted are an attempt by them to screen the view of your outbuilding. We get questions on here from time to time along the lines of "My neighbour has put up a new building in their garden, what can I plant that will grow quickly and hide it?". I don't think we'd recommend conifers but a lot of them are quick-growing and often people think they will be good evergreen screening plants.
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
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If so, just position it to cover the affected areas, and make a show of doing it when they're out there if possible. You could also make a point of saying that you think someone is coming in and using weedkiller and maybe they should watch their plants too.
If nothing else, they might be wary in future - if, and I stress if, it's them that's causing the damage, and they think they could get caught.
If they don't see you adjusting the camera, then you can hopefully catch them or anyone else who is causing the damage.
Either way- you'll find out the truth.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
If it was weedkiller the neighbour would need multiple heavy doses across a period of time to kill a Hebe that size, especially a shop bought one.