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Dying yew hedges
Chancey
Posts: 3
I had a garden replanted about 6 weeks ago (the previous owners having concreted it). This included some yew hedges. One of them seemed to show signs of browning almost immediately. The gardener blamed a local fox. However, either this is a very acrobatic (not to mention incontinent) fox, or something else is to blame. It appears to be spreading to the upper branches of the other hedges, branches going brown and dropping off.
I read somewhere about a beetle which can do this. Has anyone else had this experience and/or have any insights/advice? The gardener is shrugging off the problem, but all this didn't come cheap, and I feel he or the nursery he used should take some responsibility. However, I am no expert. Help needed please.
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Posts
I am confident it isn't watering. There is an irrigation system. I actually wondered if it was overwatering. The strange thing is how upper branches of green healthy hedges go brown and drop off.
Under-watering and Over-watering can both cause similar symptoms.
Whereabouts are you and how often is the hedge being watered?
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
I live in Ealing, West London. The fact that the garden had been concreted before may well be contributing to poor drainage. The strange thing is how one bush has all but died, but the others look healthy but show this localised browning of individual branches, which then die and drop off. It is not from the base up.
I would definitely stop any watering at this time of year now that the dry spell has ended. Keep the lawn back from the base of the hedge.
Last edited: 19 September 2016 08:14:54
Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.
Hello,
I have a friend who has yew hedges that are some years old. She has one section that is approximately 30ft long 7ft high and 3ft wide. She has asked me to look at it with a view to cutting out a long section about 8ft long that has died, there are also dead sections appearing either side of it and smaller ones further down the line. I am trying to find out if it is down to excess water as the site is quite wet, it is sloping but the ground in quite wet as it is surrounded by large trees and the grass is mainly moss. It is a large site and is not well tended as she is a widow and the garden is really too large but I just wanted to get advice as she wants me to chop out the offending section and go from there, I am loathed to do it if it will come back but conversely if it halts any further die back then i need to get on with it. I can post pictures later if needed but just wanted advice really. I am not a very good gardener, I tend to dig the holes for plants and built structures.
Hi all,
I have a yew hedge in my backyard that seems to be dying. The end of it has slowly been destroyed by something. I live in Maryland, USA so drought is virtually nonexistent and it is planted in the ground so excess water is not a problem. The hedge is 30+ years old. Is it age? What can I do to keep it alive?
Might be one of the Phytophora fungal diseases they attack some conifers if the soil is damp, it could be spreading down the hedge.