sprinkling transplants is not good enough..

refer to the link for planting and PROPER WATERING advice ...

you might also have to deal with overgrown/circling roots in potted plants ... sometimes its not as simple as shoving them in the ground ...

take the time to do it right ...

good luck

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link

Thanks. I will check the roots when they go in the ground. Soaker hose is an option.

any chance we might talk you into actually bending over.. and testing the soil at depth for proper watering ... and watering when they need it.. insert finger to 2 or 3 inches at say.. every other plant for this summer.. per week ...

instead of relying on every other trick in the book ...

unless you have highly engineered profession drip hose... i would not rely on bigboxstore recycled tire hose.. for an application over 60 to 80 feet.. and guessing when you need to run it ... it simply does not work.. in a predictable manner.. across the distance ...

that stuff might be ok for maintenance water in the future.. but if you want to protect your investment.. i would suggest you be proactive in INSURING DEEP PROPER WATERING ... according to the previous link ...

try one of the products at the link .. and add a water shutoff between it and the hose ...

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link

Allen, have you considered the expected size of Burford Hollies in a few years?

Thanks again, Ken. I was considering inexpensive soaker hoses coming from both ends, and each served by a different spigot.

Rhizo, yes, I have. At the closest point, my neighbors house is only 20' away, with windows in each house facing each other. I'm hoping for an eventual 8'-10' high hedge, with the width being about the same. My only concern beyond eventual privacy, is being able to walk between the hedge and the houses. We should each be left with 10', wide enough for vehicle if necessary.

I'd also consider a good weed block material around the new plants the length of the bed -- as well as a barrier border. Bermuda will grow right back into the area, and maybe even come up from old roots, won't it?

Dave, I use 2" of mulch to block weeds, sometimes I first add a sheet of corrugated cardboard if I'm mulching an area I don't plan to garden for awhile.

Anyways, 21 dwarf burford hollies are now aligned in a 60' long hedge on the southwest side of my house. Ended up making two passes with a sodcutter to a width of 36", followed by a bicep-busting 30 minute session with a rototiller! Broke up the rootballs (thank goodness I sharpened my machete!) and mulched with pine bark. Thoroughly watered them in, and imagined a smiling Ken standing alongside as I did.

This post was edited by Allen456 on Mon, Mar 10, 14 at 6:52

Before

After. I'll put a reminder on my calendar to post yearly updates.

Ken would be happy to know they were well watered. The update photo this year wasn't very impressive, but they've grown like crazy this summer and I will be back with a second anniversary photo next spring. Two year, three foot centers and I've got a hedge!

Did you fertilize them this past spring?

If you give them fetilizer and lots of water that can definitely speed up growth!

Absolutely. I think the first year was so slow because these were container grown and I really hacked up the root ball before putting them in the ground. They have almost doubled in size this summer.

I moved into my house in Sept 2009. There was one planted as a foundation plant. It grew soooo slow up until this year when i fertilized it. I have also been watering other plants nearby so now it has been pushing out a second round of growth this year. And it is loaded with berries. I will post pics later of the difference between last year and now.

Came back to see tlbean's burford holly, was not disappointed!

Shape it up next spring!

Two Years, still not very dramatic. Waiting on the spring growth. My lawn had a lot of weeds this winter.

Awesome, I actually just did this for my yard, I used the same variety of hollies and I cannot wait for them to grow :)

Do I spy Crape Murder in that last picture, Allen, or is it a different kind of tree?

I planted them in the spring of this year. They didn't grow that much . Hopefully next year they take off

Here they are in 2017. Looking good. No gaps in the hedge except where my neighbor almost took one out with her jeep.

Wow! They are looking very healthy! Mine is out of control! lol

Mine are starting to grow well now

Getting ready to post my 2018 pic. The hedge is now fully grown together and nearly 4' tall. I'm going to take a pic, shear them back, and then take another pic.

A little late to the party this year, but I'll be back with pics sometime this week. The hedge is doing great, just a spot or two here and there that hasn't completely filled in. It has been hit twice by my neighbors backing out of their driveway. That's why I put a holly hedge instead of a fence. The hedge "self repairs".

And here they are...

And for what it's worth, this is the first time I really sheared them back hard. Next year I will post some photos from an angle so you can see the length of the hedge.

Thanks for looking.

It is always good for folks wondering about a particular plant to have this type of long term post for reference and a reality check, so thank you for taking the time to update the post annually.

Had to trim them back this month, they were growing like crazy from all the rain we had this summer. The hedge is almost completely filled in at just over waist high. Going to be hard to keep this thing under six feet! Impossible? Maybe.

Well I did the winter shearing without taking a photo, so I'll wait until April until I take this years photo.

Over four feet tall, I took nearly a foot off the hedge leaving them around 3 ft tall x 2 ft wide. There are a few "gaps" where my neighbors clipped them with the back bumper of their car. Any advice on how to "heal" the gaps?