PLANTING YOUR HEDGE
1. Unless you are going to plant your trees
immediately, unpack them and stand them upright outside where they won’t get knocked or blown over. If the compost feels
dry give them a watering. Provided you water them when needed they can be left in their pots for several months before being
planted out.
2. A few hours before you plant them give
them a good watering.
3. If they are to be planted in a straight
line use a taut string as a guide line, it’s easier than trying to do it by eye and avoids uneven lines of trees which
don’t look very attractive.
4. Dig holes at the desired spacings. For
Leylandii we would recommend every 2 feet unless you want a hedge of 15 feet or higher in which case plant them every
3 feet. Thujas have a more columnar growth habit and should be planted every 18" no matter what height hedge you require. The
holes should be dug slightly wider and deeper than the rootball.
5. Mix some of the soil that you have dug
out 50/50 with multi-purpose compost. It's a good idea to also mix in some controlled release fertiliser such as
Osmocote. Put a layer of the soil/compost mix in the bottom of each of the holes.
6. Remove the pot, gently squeezing the
sides of the pot a few times can make this easier. If the roots are very dense and matted around the outside of rootball tease
them loose with your fingers or lightly slash down each side with a sharp knife (a Stanley knife is ideal). This will encourage
the roots to grow out into the surrounding soil and establish quicker.
7. Place the tree in the hole, the top
of the rootball should be roughly level with the surrounding soil. If it isn’t add or remove some of the soil/compost
mix until it is.
8. Fill the gap around the rootball with
more soil/compost, firming it down well as you go.
9. If your trees are not already caned,
insert a cane vertically next to the stem of the tree and tie the stem to the cane using plastic coated wire twists. You may
find some of your trees have more than one main stem, if so choose the tallest, straightest one and tie that to the cane.
Caning is especially important with green Leylandii as they tend to grow at an angle or bend over if they are not caned.
10. Once you have finished the planting
give them all a good watering to moisten the compost and settle them in.
AFTERCARE
Leylandii and Thuja are relatively tough and self-reliant but will need a bit of care from you in their first
year if they are to flourish. In dry spells they will need to be watered regularly especially if you have planted them in
Spring/Summer. It’s not just the hot weather that can dry them out, strong winds can have the same effect so keep a
check on them in winter too.
If you didn’t add any controlled release fertiliser when you planted them you can always sprinkle some
slow release fertiliser around the base to ensure they have a plentiful supply of nutrients.
Weeds will also appreciate the compost and fertiliser that you planted your trees in and if they are
not removed regularly they will compete with them for water and nutrients causing poor growth rates.
As soon as they reach the desired height or width you can start trimming them, this will encourage them to
bush out and the hedge to fill in more quickly. Hand shears or powered hedge trimmers will both make easy work of the job.
Contrary to popular belief Leylandii and Thuja are not difficult to keep under control, a light trimming a couple of times
a year is all that is needed to keep them looking good.
