The perfect time to plant a new hedge is between October and February. Its limitation is that it only works with smaller plants (graded at up to 60-80cms). Take a sapling out of the Rootgrow mixture (or bucket of water) and hold it vertically in the trench while spreading out its roots so that as much root as possible is in contact with the soil. We know ads can be annoying, but they’re what allow us to make all of wikiHow available for free. Then bring the sapling upright, thereby "sweeping" the roots down into the slot. A beech transplanted into a city backyard looks something like Alice in the White Rabbit's house after she ate the growing mushroom. I have planted 6 beech hedge trees this spring in 2 planters. Keep in mind that pruning is a process where you are damaging the plant. The tree’s leaves change color with the passing seasons, which make it an attractive hedge in many outdoor spaces. The American beech is the variety commonly seen in the United States, although there are several types of beech trees found throughout Europe and Asia. Also, whichever planting method you use, it is always easier with two or three people. More people standing on it, or two people working face to face with two spades make the job easier, quicker and more fun. JavaScript seems to be disabled in your browser. ), grass and large stones and other detritus from the soil that came out of the trench. In this case, 90% of readers who voted found the article helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. Some famous examples include beech hedge plants, hawthorn, hornbeam and privet. Larger plants are at least a year older and have very much bigger root systems. It is enough to find the cuts from the previous pruning and cut the new branches at the same level as the old cuts. Trim off the leaf bud at the end of every stem - that means the top and sides too. I found this information helpful, and I hope for. Finish the row and water it very thoroughly. If you are not sure when to plant your Beech Hedge, please have a read through this article: Best Time to Plant a Beech Hedge. loosen the bottom of the trench with a garden fork to help drainage. Then just pull the canes out the following autumn. How to grow beech. If you aren’t able to plant your entire hedge within a short period of time, such as a day or weekend, consider potted plants. Learn more... Beech (Fagus sylvatica) plants make an excellent choice for hedging because they grow quickly and densely and remain beautiful for most of the year (except for mid-fall and winter). When this is done, it should be very hard indeed to pull it out of the ground using just thumb and forefinger. Whatever its size, Beech prefers a well-drained soil - and hates sticky clay - so you may need to add grit to help with drainage, but if your ground just does not drain, then plant hornbeam in the same way instead. Young beech saplings of 40-60 or 60-80 cms tall can be slit planted (more later). How you plant a hedge will depend on how thick and large you’re hoping for it to grow. Lecture over. Next, one person puts the spade through the first slit and drives the blade, vertically, to full depth. This article has been viewed 30,665 times. For the first two years, prune the beech plants by using plant clippers to cut back the longer shoots and cutting off the tips of shorter ones. We cannot overstate this. At this point, covering it with weed-proof fabric means you won't have to weed again before planting... Come planting day either keep your plants roots protected from any wind by keeping them in the plastic bags in which they were sent. In this video I plant a bare-root beech hedge in my garden. Sign up to our newsletter for a 5 year guarantee. European Beech (Fagus sylvatica)—Beech trees are fast-growing deciduous trees that can be clipped into formal hedges. Improve the soil to give your plants a head start by adding - no more than - 25% by volume of well-rotted manure or good garden compost and mixing it in well with the existing soil. All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published. Remove any weeds (and their roots! Push one into the bottom of the trench next to each plant and tie them together with ordinary garden string (which rots in a few months). Alternately, you can use a water-soluble feed purchased at a garden supply store. Beech hedging grows relatively quickly and one can expect 1-1.5ft (30-45cm) per year after planting. You could consider using a leaky pipe along the length of the hedge to save you hours of standing there with a hose. If you need the hedge to be stock proof you would need to plant in a double row. The layers of newspaper and wood chips will keep light from reaching the weeds that want to grow, effectively suppressing the weeds. When you need them, take out one bundle at a time, put the plants into your bucket of Rootgrow (or water if you are not using Rootgrow) and take them out one at a time as you plant them. Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 30,665 times. We hope these instructions have been useful, but if beech is not for you, don't forget there is wide variety of possibilities so please have a look at the rest of our range of hedging. Do not cut it to width just yet. If you’re planting in a single line, aim for 4 plants per meter. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. It is best planted at 3 plants per metre, one every 33cms, in a single row to allow sufficient room for the roots to establish but equally to be close enough for a tightly knit hedge to grow quickly. One of the most popular types of hedging planted in the UK, a beech hedge can last for hundreds of years. But if it is dry, a point comes when water you must. If you beech hedge was well planted it will only need two things in its early years. Try to keep the base of the hedge at about 3 ¼ feet (1 m) at the base, and then thin as you go up to your desired plant height. Bare-root plants, like beech, hornbeam and yew are ideal as they’re cheap and easy to plant during the dormant season. Beech is the most popular deciduous, formal hedge grown in this country. By using our site, you agree to our. Hi, just a note to let you know that we do use cookies to help us determine what our customers really want and therefore to give them the great service that they deserve. Aftercare. In this guide, we outline all you need to know when planting beech hedging. Backfill around the roots with the soil you removed from the trench. However one row is "offset from the other by 16-17cms so that looked at the right way up any 5 plants would make a "W" if they were joined up. They first emptied their stocks of nutrients before dying. If you really can’t stand to see another ad again, then please consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. The plants should be planted in a staggered pattern – rather than one straight line. The better the contact between earth and root, the better the plant will establish. The first root should be just below the soil’s surface. They need trench planting. Hedge Planting in Ireland Is A Great Way To Cultivate An Attractive Hedging Windbreak, Fence, Garden Feature For Your Garden. As long as soil doesn’t have too much clay and there’s a good amount of drainage, the plants should thrive. Overgrown Beech Hedge Plants. Do this all along one edge and then back along the other trying to keep the fabric taut. In year 1 in particular, if there is a dry week PLEASE WATER YOUR HEDGE. Follow the steps below to grow beech trees from seed. Last Updated: November 3, 2020 So for a double row you will need to allow 5 trees per metre. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/c\/c0\/Plant-a-Beech-Hedge-Step-1.jpg\/v4-460px-Plant-a-Beech-Hedge-Step-1.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/c\/c0\/Plant-a-Beech-Hedge-Step-1.jpg\/aid4594086-v4-728px-Plant-a-Beech-Hedge-Step-1.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"