Hmmm, so many possibilities. How large a hole did you dig? Did you plant it at the same or slightly higher soil level as it was in the pot? I would not have soaked it to loosen the roots. I would not have worked too hard to separate the roots (I tend to rough them up a bit and maybe pull some on the very bottom loose, but that is it), and with those temperatures and lack of rain for 8 weeks other than one rainfall, I would guess it was doomed since it was not taken care of. I would have watered it deeply once a week (at least an inch, maybe two) and water also away from the trunk because the roots will reach for the moisture. New plants do need moisture until they become established, but too much water/soaking is not good either. Such a shame. I hope the rest of the plants for the hedge do better. Maybe try link below which seems to have them. If they do, maybe inquire as to their planting recommendations. Link:

CT. Nursery with Ilex crenata 'Chesapeake'

Lack of adequate water to establish would be my guess. Japanese holly prefers a consistently moist root run.

A possible alterative would be Ilex crenata 'Sky Pencil'. A somewhat narrower profile but a similar size and is widely available.

Thanks guys. Maybe my first guess was the right one.

I should clarify things a bit. I wouldn't say the holly was *neglected*, but my kids aren't experienced gardeners and may not have given it the water a newly-planted shrub needs. But in the heat and near-drought we've had that could be the culprit. I think non-gardeners in general don't really know how to water properly. A spritz with the hose and they're done. I watered when I was there but in that heat it likely wasn't enough overall.

The hole was twice the size of the rootball. I dug down about an inch deeper just to loosen the hard soil, and planted at soil level.

These roots were insane. It was just one big pot-shaped mass. I literally took hours and hours to try to gently loosen all the roots, soaking it in between a bit just so I could work with it and to try to loosen and wash away some of the medium just to work the roots a bit. It was probably more handling than it liked, but it would not have survived anyway if I didn't do that.

Thanks for your input. I'm sure I can find something else to fill this spot. I'll just keep looking!

:)

Dee

The nursery in my link had that one for something like $39.95/49.95. Could be worth a call if they are in stock.

Dee ~ Home Depot has a one-year return policy for perennials, trees & shrubs. It might be worth your time to take it back... I would!

roxanna I thought of that, but unfortunately I don't have the receipt!

cyn427 thanks for the link. That nursery is a bit far from me and I don't have the time to make the trip right now. I'm going to contact them to see if they offer delivery or to see if they'll hopefully have it in stock either later this season or next spring.

:)

Dee

Whatever you find and decide to do, I am sure it will look wonderful.

Aw, thanks cyn427! The rest of the shrub border is shaping up nicely so I'm sure we'll be happy with whatever replacement we find.

:)

Dee

coming in late on this... I once had a landscaper who used to work at a large high quality nursery for decades. He taught me to always (rootbound or not) run a knife (or box cutter) through the outside of the rootball vertically in four spots to cut the roots, reaching a bit into the bottom roots. They will expand out on their own once cut. Not a deep cut... 1/2" does the trick.

As far as watering new woodies in the summer, my rule of thumb is every other day for a week or two. every 3-4 days for the next 3-4 weeks. Of course, that assumes reasonable soil and no runoff. Did you do the soil mound on the perimiter?

Sorry for your loss. Looks like a nice plant. I'm going to try to remember it next time I need an evergreen.

Wendy, yes, I had always followed the same advice - the four vertical cuts on a rootball. I tried that and then some lol. I can't emphasize enough how incredibly rootbound this poor thing was. I've been gardening for almost 30 years and have never seen it this bad. I still can't figure out how the ilex not only survived in a HD parking lot for so long, but how it looked so incredibly healthy and beautiful! I expected it to be rootbound (it IS HD after all lol) but this was crazy.

The watering was kind of out of my control. It was in my daughter's garden and while I did try to water it about twice a week while I was there, I don't think it got enough water when I wasn't.

The worst thing about this is I just cannot find this ilex (Chesapeake) anywhere. Well, I should say anywhere that I can easily get it. Not by mail-order, not local enough that I have time to go get one.

I just got a mail-order ilex Squeeze Box to try as a replacement. The width is not quite the same so I will likely have to move some things around a bit for the privacy aspect. Sadly, it's about 7 inches tall haha! I do a lot of mail order and expected that, so the size itself is not an issue. But going from a beautiful 2.5 foot shrub for a great deal to a 7-inch little shrub that cost almost the same is a bit discouraging. But it will grow and in the meantime we'll figure something out - a trellis with vining annuals etc.

Thanks for the input!

:)

Dee