To encourage laurel growth, trim the hedge in July or August. But bare in mind that this hedge has large, tough leaves and is best trimmed using secateurs. Pruning of Laurel hedges can be performed at any time up until the end of summer. However, it’s best done in spring.
How do you prune an overgrown laurel hedge?
Start by reducing the height using a taught string line to keep it level, the height can be reduced drastically by several metres if necessary (even taking the plants back to stumps) although the work can be split over a couple of seasons if you are cutting the height back by more than one third.
How far can you cut back a laurel hedge?
Laurel can be trimmed or pruned to the height you require and, if it grows too big, it can be cut back as hard as you like – right back to the stump if necessary – and it will re-grow quickly into a new hedge.
How many times a year should you cut a laurel hedge?
A laurel hedge only needs trimming once a year. The best time to prune is late spring or early summer.
What is the best month to cut a laurel hedge? – Related Questions
When should you not cut a laurel hedge?
Laurel hedges may be trimmed at any time during the season but its best to avoid the coldest months of the year as the cut edges may be susceptible to frost damage. Many text books advise trimming Laurel hedging plants with secateurs to avoid cut edges to the large leaves, it really isn’t necessary.
When should you not cut hedges?
We recommend avoiding hedge cutting during the main breeding season for nesting birds, which usually runs throughout March to August each year. This can be weather dependent and some birds may nest outside this period, so it is important to always check carefully for active nests prior to cutting.
How many times a year can you cut hedges?
Formative pruning is usually carried out in winter or early spring. After this, maintenance trimming is carried out, usually once a year for informal hedges and twice a year for formal hedges. Some formal hedges may need three cuts a year. Maintenance trimming is generally carried out between spring and summer.
Does cutting laurel encourage growth?
To prune laurel to encourage growth, we’d recommend trimming the branches and cutting them back several times a year (depending on how fast it grows) by up to a quarter. This makes the bush come back bushier and thicker than before more rapidly.
Can I cut laurel hedge in August?
Laurel is easier to trim if done twice a year; because the branches are not as woody, and there are a lot less trimmings to deal with. Laurel trimmed in August still has plenty of time for regrowth before the winter; but not so much growth as to leave the hedge looking untidy during the Winter, and early spring months.
How long does it take for a laurel hedge to establish?
If left untrimmed, the hedging will reach this height in around 20-50 years. The shrubs can spread up to around 8m, so you need to take this into account when planting. Place Laurel plants in the ground with spacing of around half a metre between them.
What is the lifespan of a laurel?
It has a life span of approximately 50 years. Laurel Oak thrives in either full sun or partial shade. It grows in upland, sandhill, and dune areas with dry, well-drained, and sandy soils; it is also tolerant of wet and periodically flooded conditions.
Is a laurel hedge a good idea?
Laurel in particular is probably the best hedge to grow in shade. They tolerate shade well and are often planted under tree canopies in large estate gardens. All types of laurel will also grow well in full sun. If you want to create some privacy for your garden, laurel is a much more attractive option than a fence.
How tall should a laurel hedge be?
Cherry Laurel is an easy hedge to transplant, and you can have a quick, evergreen hedge, by buying the plants at 5 foot to 6 foot tall. If you plant the smaller plants, and you maintain them well, they can grow from about 18 inches tall, to being a 4 to 5 foot hedge, in 3 seasons of growth.
Are laurels low maintenance?
While they thrive in full sunlight, Skip laurels also fare very well in the shade—just one of the attributes that makes them low-maintenance and easy to manage.
Do laurels have invasive roots?
Almost certainly not. This isn’t even a tree; it’s a big shrub. The most troublesome trees are those with deep, penetrating root systems, but laurel’s is particularly shallow.
Are laurels easy to maintain?
They are quite easy to maintain you should trim your laurel hedge in late spring or early summer as the hedge will produce new shoots very quickly at this time of year which is great as it will cover up any leaves that are left looking “tatty” after using a hedge trimmer.
How do you keep a laurel hedge healthy?
Once you’ve planted your laurel hedging plants, you need to make sure they get enough water to keep them alive and growing well. Usually plants only need watering from March to October. During the winter months, they use less water and normally get enough from the rain.
Why do laurels go brown?
Frost damage during the winter months can cause brown patches on established Laurels of all types and is usually at its worst when there is a very cold wind with no protective cover of snow to protect the winter foliage.