To start us off helping you please give your location and post a photo of the problem. Thanks.

Thanks for your response. I'm in Torquay, Devon. Apologies I had problems uploading the photos but they should be there now.

In addition to the burnt margins the new leaves also have puckering. So unless there was a hard spring frost just as the new leaves were coming out, that could perhaps produce such effects it is likely to be some kind of chemical related injury. Like fertilizer or herbicide damage. The puckering in particular could indicate exposure to something like an amine herbicide such as might have been used on the lawn.

Thanks for coming back to me. There was one night of frost a week or so after they were planted. The lawn has not been treated but i did treat the laurels with miracle grow after a couple of weeks so maybe they have reacted to that? I have noticed that the older, darker green leaves are unaffected.

Had any gales in from the sea since they were planted? Could be salt damage. And any lawn treatments could also be a problem as Embothrium said. The kind of frost you'd have in Torquay wouldn't bother them a bit.

I know you don't want to hear this but cherry laurel for that position is really not a great choice. They grow fast and enormous. If you cut them with shears or a hedge trimmer you will always have chopped off leaves on show and you'll have a permanent hedge trimming job on your hands. In Torquay you could have had lots of more interesting, salt resistant hedges such as Escallonia or Griselinia. Both evergreen and suitable for the seaside. Btw slugs and snails won't attack laurel so no need for the pellets.

When I visited Cornwall in February 1994 a hard frost had ruined the bloom on a Campbell magnolia at the Burncoose nursery site.

Glad you mentioned that, floral! The spacing, both next to each other and in proximity to the fence, is way too close for cherry laurel. I would assume they grow in a similar manner there as the do here in the PNW and it is not unusual to see 20' tall laurel hedges that are 6-8 feet thick.

Although we are in Torquay we are a good 2.5 miles from the seafront so we are not particularly exposed to the salt spray. We did have some strong winds over the past month and the front garden is exposed to strong southerly winds. Im hoping that they will be a good choice as other people in the locality have established laurel hedges and they all look very healthy although i take your point regarding them growing quickly and being a maintenance liability. Do you think it could be wind damage?

Agree that if these are the typical species - which they look to be - they are way too jumbo of a plant for that narrow strip.

Wind damage I don't know about making them pucker. What is this Humix you mentioned? Otherwise if you know of no chemical exposure there on your planting site then it goes to wondering if something happened before you get them, that didn't become obvious until the new growth was flushed.

Thanks for your reply. I could easily make the borders bigger and maybe replant the laurel further away from the fence. The idea was to keep the laurel to the same height of the picket fence. Humix is an organic manure. 'A high-quality organic blend that provides nourishment for trees, shrubs or plants, and can also improve the texture of your soil' according to the garden centres website. As I said the plants looked very healthy when they were delivered but I guess you never know.

What about a chemical spray blowing in from next door?

It will be an ongoing battle to keep the laurel at that height. Not impossible.......just a great deal of work. And will have the hacked off edges of leaves that floral mentioned as a more or less permanent feature.

Thanks for your responses. Really good to know that there are kind people around who are willing to give you their time. I will give the laurel 12 months and see how much work it is. I could always remove them if they get too much. 2 further questions - do you think I should remove every other plant so they are not so thick and do you think they will survive/grow out of the yellow leaf issue?

Removing every other plant won't really help. It'll still grow upwards and outwards. You have one of the best gardening climates in the country and there are infinitely more interesting and suitable shrubs you could be planting. Do a bit of research on plants for coastal gardens. I mentioned two above. Others are Olearia, Hebe or even Fuchsia. All make good hedges.

you might also consider if they were greenhouse propagated.. and you slammed them out into direct sun.. that there was some related sunburn or some such ...

it might also follow.. that if they were wind protected in a greenhouse.. that wind could have dried them out more than they were accustomed to ....

you should probably harden things off for a few weeks ... before you plant them.. in the future ... gradually letting them acclimate to local conditions ...

all thaty said.. the damage looks rather minimal.. and i would look to see what newly pushed growth emerges.. and if it isnt fully acclimated.. and fine ... perhaps there is nothing left to fi ...

the fert drench could also have burned the leaves if improperly mixed.. or applied in sun ... possible.. but maybe not probable ...

also ... newly planted plants are stressed.. in your case from shipping.. changes in sun/humidity/air movement.. etc ... but they are most likely .... not hungry ... next time ... just plant them.. and water them properly until they get established.. before you fert them ... and if you amended the soil last year.. im not sure they needed more fert ...

ken

Thanks for all the advice everyone. I will let you know how they are going in a few months time and do some research on other varieties in the meantime.

Update please