Why should I plant a Yew hedge?
Yew (Taxus Baccata) is also known as English Yew or Common Yew and has been a popular hedging plant for many centuries. Yew is a native evergreen conifer to the UK and you will find many ancient specimens of Yew in almost all churchyards, which are often hundreds of years old. Yew is slow growing and clips well to form a dense hedge with dark evergreen foliage. Yew is also used by many people for creating topiary. Yew is a common hedge plant used in many formal gardens as it is considered quintessentially English and its slow growth means it keeps its smart shape well after clipping.
How tall will Yew grow?
A single Yew can be grown into a tree and will grow to a good height if left for long enough, although it is slow growing. When planting a Yew hedge, it can quite happily be grown as a short hedge of around 2ft in height but will be equally happy grown as a taller hedge with a height of 10ft or more. Yew can also be cut back hard and will regenerate which makes it useful for those trying to restore older hedges.
How quickly will a Yew hedge grow?
Yew are slow growing and this must be understood when planting a hedge. They will put on around 6-9 inches of growth each year if left untrimmed. Once the hedge has reached its desired height it should be trimmed at that height accordingly to maintain its size and increase its density. This will slow down the upward growth of your hedge and encourage growth sideways to make a denser hedge. If you are looking for a fast growing instant hedge, then Yew is probably not the answer unless you are prepared to buy extremely large plants. However, Yew does make an excellent hedge if a little bit of patience is exercised.
When should I clip or trim a Yew hedge?
A Yew hedge will need to be clipped annually in the Spring or Autumn as you would with any other hedge.
How far apart should I plant a Yew hedge?
Yew should be planted 2ft (60cm) apart regardless of how tall or short they are when you buy them and careful preparation of the planting site is important. See section below on how to look after your Yew hedge after planting.
How do I look after my Yew hedge after planting?
Although Yew plants will put up with most soil types, we recommended that the planting soil is mixed with compost to give the plants the best environment to grow in for their first year. After planting, your Yew hedge should be watered regularly during its first year to give it the best chance of survival and this is especially important if your hedge is being planted in the drier summer months. That being said, Yew does not like waterlogged soils and so over-watering can be a problem.
How do I water my Yew hedge?
Watering a Yew hedge is especially important if you are planting during the summer or a dry period. For watering, we recommend using leaky hose (sometimes described as porous pipe) which can be connected to your existing hose pipe and will slowly leak water onto the roots of your hedge in a controlled manner to ensure that it soaks in and your hedge becomes properly watered. Leaky hose is cheap, easy to install and very effective. See our Accessories page for more details on leaky hose.
Is Yew tolerant of different soil types?
Yew will tolerate most soil types (including dry sites) but do not like being in waterlogged soil. If you have a wet site, speak to us for alternative suggestions.
Does Yew like full sun or shade?
Yew will grow well in full sunshine or shade making them extremely versatile.
We usually stock a selection of different sizes of Yew throughout the year. In the colder months of the year (beginning in the autumn) we supply a large range of different sizes of root balled Yew (particularly larger sizes) which can be a more cost effective way of planting a large Yew hedge.
For more information on our availability of Yew or if you have any questions or queries about existing Yew hedges or need advice about planting a new Yew hedge, please call us on 01252 714552 or email sales@hedgesonline.com