Conifer Hedges are set to die out in the UK

 
 
Most of the conifer hedges that you see today were planted in the 70’s and 80’s they were popular plants back then and everyone wanted them. Now 30 plus years down the line it’s a different story, and it’s not surprising. These short lived plants that have been neglected for years ,rarely watered or fed, pruned too often or not enough are no longer thriving, add to this the aphid attacks that leave them vulnerable to Fungal diseases and climate change affecting our seasonal extremes it’s no wonder people are looking for alternatives.
So what can we do? To replace an established hedge like for like is a costly affair and many of us would not have the budget to even consider this.
At Garden advice we have been rejuvenating tired old conifer hedges in a new way with Yew. By removing the lower branches of the existing hedge we are able to underplant with the young Yew plants, as this starts to mature and establish over time we are able to  remove the old conifer hedging leaving a fresh new Yew Hedge in its place,, the new plants are able to tap into the Mycorrhizal network from the old conifer root systems helping to produce robust plants. Although not instant hedging this is a simple, easy and cost effective way to replace your old hedge.