Seeking Advice on Promoting Growth of Privet Hedging

[InfoSeeker]

I planted privet hedging in Sept 07, the plants that I purchased were about 1ft tall at the time. I know I should prune these a couple of times a year but there has been varied growth, ie some plants are close to 3 ft while others have not grown. I will prune all of these this week and plan to repeat in September. Does anyone have any tips for pruning as I have not attempted this before & would it be worthwhile to purchase some fertiliser? Most of the ground is well drained, probably about 30ft that is not & I tried to fork the area around this and also apply compost, initially I should have dug deeper and laid gravel/stones to improve drainage in this area.

I am a novice so any tips would be appreciated. The hedge runs from front to back on both sides of the house and would be about 100ft long on each side.

 

[computerman]

I believe Prince Charles speaks to his, and according to Monty Don, it works..................

 

[Sherman]

How far apart are your plants? They should be a minimum of 12-18 inches apart - privet is a very hungry plant. Are you keeping the ground around them weed free? You should ensure there are no weeds, and no grass, growing around them or within two feet on either side of the hedge. Are they in an exposed location? Might be worthwhile putting up a temporary windbreak if they are. Stay away from them if you use a strimmer - it is very easy to nick the stems. Give them a mulch of well-rotted manure or mushroom compost now - this will feed them and will also prevent weed growth and retain moisture. Make sure the mulch isn't touching the stems as this can cause them to rot.

Otherwise, growth of nearly 2ft in 18 months is not shabby at all (this is only one growing season) - if the smaller plants look healthy they'll soon catch up.

 

[InfoSeeker]

Sherman, tks for the reply.

There is a gap of just over 1ft between plants. Not always weed free or grass free around the plants. Not sure where I would get a mixture of well-rotted manure or mushroom compost, will look in garden centre, etc for fertiliser.