Need Some Help With Hedge

[Neeranam]

I live in Khon Kaen city and am thinking that my soil is crap.

My hedges had more leaves 4 months ago when they were put in the garden. I give them heaps and heaps of water. I bought some fertilizer and they started looking better but then worse. I don't want to put fertilizer on them every week. Any ideas? This is my first type of gardening.

I heard if you 'prune' the thing more leaves will grow back.

My soil is basically sticky horrible clay sort of stuff.

If I were to prune ir, how how much should I remove?

Cheers

NN

[HeavyDrinker]

Try a commercial compost....

When pruning, usually about 2-3 inches from the shoot but this sounds more like a sick plant you're dealing with so pruning may not help much...

[Neeranam]

Here's a better pic

Edited December 29, 2013 by Neeranam

[Neeranam]

Try a commercial compost....

When pruning, usually about 2-3 inches from the shoot but this sounds more like a sick plant you're dealing with so pruning may not help much...

Sick in what way? Infection, insects?

[HeavyDrinker]

Doesn't look much like a hedge to me either, more like a tree, but thats just semantics.

I'd say lack of nutrients...given the wizened, spooky appearance of the tree. You say your soil is clay like then I'd transplant it to a pot with compost asap and keep it in the sun and well watered then see if he bucks up any....

[HeavyDrinker]

Looks like there's a lot of dead wood there too so cutting that off won't hurt too much.....

[loong]

I give them heaps and heaps of water.

My soil is basically sticky horrible clay sort of stuff.

Lots of water in this type of soil can be a mistake because of poor drainage.

New construction work and lots of cement dust flying around can damage some plants.

[IsaanAussie]

One question, is the hedging plant you are using grown in your area? If so go take a look. If not then then look for the factors that will let it thrive. Perhaps the soil preparation when you planted? It could be a lack of humus in the soil, the percolation rate and moisture holding, the amount of shade or lack of it, the pH of the soil or the presence of nematodes or other soil borne pests, fungus or insects. I doubt pruning it will assist. Perhaps taking a cutting and soil samples to the local agricultural college would be a good place to start. Look to members that have posted on this sort of issue and send a PM or two.

[Neeranam]

MMM, thanks for the comments. Maybe I'll take them out and stick new potting soil in the holes.

Now, I wonder if I can put them in pots , maybe underground?

I have 20 of these guys.

[cooked]

You must have sand laying around as you are building. Take the bushes out, put them in shade with the roots covered. Dig out the trench again, deeper and wider this time and add about 30% sand to the soil, try to mix it in. Plant again being careful not to plant deeper than they were when you bought them. Water the soil in (not for thirst but to ensure that the roots are fully in contact with the soil. Now you can add compost or cow manure, not too much. Some of the fertilisers sold here are very aggressive, I have killed a few trees with the blue stuff in my time.

Water twice a week for a week or two, reduce progressively but always give a lot.

If this doesn't work I dunno. If you keep the plants in pots they will eventually die.

[teletiger]

What is it? Looks very shrubby? Also, are you using chlorinated government water? You can treat the heavy clay with coconut skin (dust) 40%, compost 40%, and burnt rice skin 20%. all ingredients available at a decent garden shop.

As cooked says, don't overwater. Also adding a compost tea weakly, weekly should invigorate the roots.

Putting them in pots and burying them is an option. Make sure it is the large black pots with plenty of holes in the bottom for the roots to escape. As they grow (depending on what they are?) they should just bust out of the pots.

How to make the tea is available in the pinned section of this forum.

Regards.

[RedBullHorn]

Drainage is the key or the roots will rot... You need partial sand. Don't even need fertilizer, hedge are harddy plant. Natural~

Edited December 30, 2013 by RedBullHorn

[Jotham79]

I think the first step would be to identify the plant and see what it likes, but I agree with most of the other posts. To me it is hard to tell but it looks like Jasmine. If it were me I would start over. Dig the hole considerably larger than the container the plant comes in and put in come cow manure and straw and cover with a few cm of good soil then add the plant. Make sure there is lots of room to the roots to spread out.

[kickstart]

Drainage, my land has a high water table .I had a lime tree ,just dug a hole put some fym in planted the tree,10 minute job ,2 months later it was not a happy tree,,rainy season to,so took the tree out dug a hole 18 inchs deep ,put some stones in the hole

then some fym mixed with soil, and some soil from our charcoal pit, re- planted the tree, never looked back,now getting some

limes

Might work for you.

Regads

[Neeranam]

What is it? Looks very shrubby? Also, are you using chlorinated government water? You can treat the heavy clay with coconut skin (dust) 40%, compost 40%, and burnt rice skin 20%. all ingredients available at a decent garden shop.

As cooked says, don't overwater. Also adding a compost tea weakly, weekly should invigorate the roots.

Putting them in pots and burying them is an option. Make sure it is the large black pots with plenty of holes in the bottom for the roots to escape. As they grow (depending on what they are?) they should just bust out of the pots.

How to make the tea is available in the pinned section of this forum.

Regards.

I am using government water.

Thanks for the replies. I have bought some new plants to go in between the ones already there. The ones I bought were ficus something.

The old ones I have a problem with - I found some coconut skin.

But how can I get all the earth/clay off the roots - it's just one big solid lump. Maybe get as much off as I can. I'll mix the coconut with some compost and sand. Maybe some straw I found lying around.

Going to be quite a time-consuming job. Now I can understand my mother spending all day in her garden.

We used to live about 200m from the Beechgrove Garden - I should have watched the tv show.

One more question - dog shit. I have 4 or 5 dogs and if I scoop one off the lawn, can I through it into a plant?

[cooked]

I wouldn't bother too much about cleaning the roots but you can use a hosepipe. The fact that you have a lump of 'earth' attached indicates that your soil is more suitable for making bricks than horticulture.

Dog poo: not really, you would have to build some kind of a septic tank first, google is your friend.

[teletiger]

Any sort of raw poo should be composted first.

Regards.

Edit: As for the chlorinated water, most plants do not like it, to say the least. Holding it in a tank first will help to dissipate it, adding a few caps of EM will also do the job. In our rental place here in Chiang Mai, even though the water is held in a 2 cu mt tank, it still smells like showering with swimming pool water. We moved all our orchids and pot plants to a place my wife just bought, outside Chiang Mai, with it's own well, and the difference is astonishing. Everything is sprouting and blooming despite the cold weather. maybe this deserves a thread of it's own.

Edited January 1, 2014 by teletiger

[Neeranam]

Well I never knew but my wife had a big sack of cow poo. I washed the roots for 4 plants and dug out the clay soil and put in a plastic black bag(with a couple of holes). Then mixed coconut skin, cow poo and compost. Leave for a few days and see if there is any improvement before either doing the same to all 10 plants or buying some new hedge plants. Thanks a lot for all the tips.

[lakecross]

i trim my bush about once a week, i find the shorter i leave it the less aggravation it is. receive many compliments. the neighbour has a huge unruly thing which has never seen a manicure. i dread to think what creepy crawlies inhabit it.

[teletiger]

i trim my bush about once a week, i find the shorter i leave it the less aggravation it is. receive many compliments. the neighbour has a huge unruly thing which has never seen a manicure. i dread to think what creepy crawlies inhabit it.

I really hope this is a spoof.....and a good one too. ...Or else,

Regards.

[lakecross]

[samuijimmy]

Just looking at those images again, it looks to me what the Thai's call "Jasmine," a fairly common low to medium height hedging plant... Usually not that fast growing... at least in the south... things are different in the mid and northern areas!

I've noticed that this particular plant, does tend to shred it leaves at certain times of the year, and new ones appear... so that could be why there is not too much foliage... ! How long has it not had many leaves?

In the second image there is a lot of grass growing around the base of the plant, that will eat up moisture and any nutrient...so clear that away .... also the plastic tie and the first image plant should be cut off before girdling the stems! .... hard to tell, but it looks like there is concrete around the base of the first plant, they may not be so good!

[Neeranam]

Well they've certainly turned around and are bushy and flowering. I wonder if they are a seasonal plant.

[namdocmai]

Jasmine can became a big tree, you have to prune them all the time and they will become a dense hedge. I also have them in clay, never water them and they are full of of flowers now. Useless tree though, i want to have a hedge that gives nice cherry's and i have the plants allready.

You grow them on top of the drain? Then be carefull with the roots.

I always cut them and throw the cuttings back on the soil so it can compost.