How to plant a hedgePlanting a hedge is a very easy, do it yourself, job. Whether its pot grown, bare root or rootballed, its the same principles - good ground preparation, plenty of space for each root, elimination of air pockets and plenty of water not just when the plants are going into the ground but in the weeks following planting until the plants are fully established and able to fend for themselves.
If you're not quite ready for planting
 pot grown can be left in their pots for a few weeks - just keep them well watered but not waterlogged
bare roots can be kept in a sheltered area like a shed (protected from drying winds) for a few days/up to a week - just open up the package and keep the roots moist. If you need to keep them longer before planting, they'll need to be "heeled in" in which case they'll be fine (again subject to watering) until late winter - but they must be permanently planted whilst dormant
rootballs also need to be kept moist and we recommend planting them as quickly as possible after delivery because evergreens suffer more than deciduous plants from being moved.
The following is a simple step by step guide on how to do it properly and a quick method for planting bare roots for large quantities
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| Prepare the ground in advance - clear all weeds at least 30cms on both sides of the proposed hedgeline. |
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Dig a trench, and prick the sides and bottom of the trench with a garden fork so that the roots can establish. For pot grown plants, the trench needs to be about twice as wide as the pots. Rootballed and bare root plants will need a trench twice as wide as the root structure.
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| Enrich the soil with organic matter |
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| Mark a straight line, with string, and cut a cane to size so that each plant is evenly spaced |
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| Water the plants and allow them to drain |
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| Gently tease the roots of pot grown plants and plant them (at the same depth as they were in the pot) into the trench, or in the case of bare root and rootballed plants, plant to the damp line on the main stem where you can see they were previously planted in the fields. Leave the rootballed plants in the netting - its biodegradable. Firm the soil to eliminate air pockets. Its really important that there are no air pockets because this is how frost damage is caused |
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| Firm the soil to eliminate air pockets. Its really important that there are no air pockets because this is how frost damage is caused |
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| Water each plant with approximately one full watering can per plant |
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| Cover with mulch to stop weeds establishing and reduce water loss from the soil and keep your new hedge well watered until its root system is fully established. |
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| The quick method for bare roots is to just dig a large spade into the soil (go as deep as possible), push the spade and soil away from you to expose a hole in the ground, pop the bare root into the hole, release the spade and firm in. This method is suitable for fertile, moist soil and where a certain failure rate (in return for a huge time saving) can be accepted. |
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