I planted a privet hedge in March, it now looks bare in places, what can I do? Will it grow back in Spring?

I planted individual plants 200mm apart as advised in garden centre, it grew well over the spring/summer but has suffered over the winter.

I planted a privet hedge in March, it now looks bare in places, what can I do? Will it grow back in Spring?
Well the plants obviously have NOT dried out if you are in UK.


Don't worry, they suffering from shock after transplanting. Come spring they will bush out.
Reply:Privet hedges do go dormant and loose the leaves and the birds eat the berries. Not only will they grow back be careful when you prune, the dropped branches will take root.


I planted a 180 ft row they are now tall enough to hid the neighbors junk....


I never had berries on mine until about the 3rd season. At least I never noticed them. The birds in winter are grateful.
Reply:Privet is pretty hardy, if you clip it in the spring it will grow better. There are some good sites on here on privets


http://www.google.co.uk/search?hl=en%26amp;q=p...
Reply:It should grow back in well spring summer time


if not you could by a few smaller versuins of the hedge and cut the root in half and put it in the gaps then that will start growing back
Reply:Keep in mind that pruning generally stimulates growth and fill in gaps. If you have frost damage definitely prune. I cut back a poinsettia last spring so that it was 6 inches tall. It grew like crazy and is now 4 feet tall.
Reply:Don't worry it will be fine, privet is as tough as old boots.





Feed it with a high nitrogen fertiliser in early spring, sometime during mid March to early April depending on the weather. Something like dried blood is best.





Cut it immediately after flowering. The more you cut it the thicker it will become. Remember to batten the hedge so it is wider at the bottom than at the top otherwise the bottom branches will get shaded out and go bare.
Reply:Once it gets started there will be no stopping it lol.


It can take a few years to fill.
Reply:Also consider that plants do suffer transplant shock. Making sure that you take care of it with watering as the first few years are critical until the plants establish themselves in the soil. If you've had decently cold weather they might have suffered a bit, which isn't necessarily unusual. They should grow back in spots, but if you notice that it is dead wood in those damaged places, you might want to consider pruning out that dead wood. Make sure to check on the moisture of the soil that the plants are in throughout the growing season.
Reply:Prune it back by about a third in the spring. That should help it thicken up.
Reply:It will take 2 or 3 years to fill in and become a really nice looking hedge
Reply:Newly Privet hedging takes a while to establish and the first winter it will look fairly raggy.





Even with cold / frost damage the plants will bounce back in the spring.





Keep weeds / grass down around the plants and provide tree / shrub fertilizer in late February lightly dug in until the plants are fully established.





I planted a 300 feet long Privet hedge 4 years ago and it is now going strong despite being in an exposed situation





Prune in summer but only AFTER the hedge flowers. IT is very important not to prune prior to this.





Best of luck with the hedge