We had a fabulous laurel hedge for years the last 4 years it has deteriated so bad should I dig it out and start again or what do you advise
It looks like you have had to cut out so much that I would probably remove them and start over. They can suffer from fungal diseases.
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/shrubs/cherry-laurel/growing-cherry-laurels.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/gardening-by-zone/zone-8/zone-8-hedges.htm
I have a very long privett hedge and the first bush died back so we replaced it with a laurel bush and then the next one did the same and so on and so on each time I replace it with a laurel bush any ideas why the privett which is healthy suddenly dies off?
Are the laurel bushes shading the privet? Sudden shade may have weakened them. It also could be the privets have a disease such as verticillium wilt that has nothing to do with the new laurels.
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/disease/verticillium-wilt-treatment.htm
https://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/ligustrum/
https://ecommons.cornell.edu/bitstream/handle/1813/60596/BranchingOut_Privet6-12.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
I have busy road approx half mile from back fence and the noise carries across the fields.
Yes, laurels are evergreen so they should help absorb noise year round.
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/shrubs/cherry-laurel/growing-cherry-laurels.htm
Hi, our neighbour next door has a weeping birch which is riddled with some kind of blight. We have Laurel hedging along the fence where their tree over hangs and has infected all our laurel in the garden plus our Portuguese laurel trees with some form of white mold. We've cut all the infected leaves off but each time the new growth grows its all infected again. I was recommended to spray a mild solution of bicarbonate of soda in water with a drip of oil, but this hasn't worked. I'm really desperate as the entire hedging and all my trees are now infected!! Please help what can I do to stop this from killing my hedging and trees?? Also the laurel at the front of the house seems to be dying hence the yellow leaves it doesn't need what is it all the dogs pee killing it?
If dogs pee near it... This will, definitely, be the cause. Not only does it knock the pH off, but it will throw nitrogen and ammonia levels through the roof. Any molds in the area will take hold and quickly kill a weakened tree.
I would use heavier fungicides, though. Copper based fungicides will be best. This article will help:
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/info/what-is-copper-fungicide.htm
Here are some articles to help test your soil:
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/testing-soil.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/soil-ph-plants.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/soil-fertilizers/test-soil-for-pests-and-diseases.htm
We live in South Norfolk, a very dry area. When we moved into our new house five years ago, we had to create a garden out of a building site. Planting a hedge of 50 sizeable laurels was challenging and, for each shrub, mainly involved removing half a barrow load of debris and infilling the resultant hole with topsoil. We were lucky that planting coincided with an unusually wet autumn/early winter, enabling the laurels to become established. Five years on, it is now a good looking and dense 7ft hedge but I worry every summer about the number of dead leaves underneath it. Outwardly the hedge looks fine, apart from the occasional yellow or brown leave, but I'm very conscious of the leaf carpet underneath. Should I remove them regularly so that, on the rare occasions we get meaningful rain, some moisture can work its way through the dense canopy and down to the roots? Should I even worry about the leaf loss, bearing in mind that they come from those parts of the hedge I can't even see?
Unfortunately, without photos I am unable to say much about the situation. Unless they are falling due to disease, they probably aren't doing much harm. If these are diseased, then removing the leaf litter will help prevent further spread.
For now, I will include some articles that will help you with the care of the shrubs:
My Laurel hedge look very sick My gardener has been treating it this past year for hedge mites. However my local garden nursery assure me it’s shot hole. What would you recommend to try to get rid of it. Thank you
Our experts recommend sanitation and applying a fixed copper fungicide in the fall.
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/disease/shot-hole-disease-fungus.htm
Need your recommendation for a planting that will grow tall (even 8-10 feet would be ideal) near the periphery of our property line and provide privacy and a sound barrier from nearby street noise. The planting location is the issue for finding a planting that will thrive there. It is in full shade under the canopy of two large pine trees (so the soil is acidic). We are in Zone 5 in Colorado. We have considered the common laurel, but we are not sure if it is appropriate for Zone 5.
The Laurel would be a good choice, here, but you might have some other choices, as well. This article will help:
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/gardening-by-zone/zone-5/zone-5-shade-shrubs.htm
These articles will offer more ideas that may work, as well:
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/gardening-by-zone/zone-5/planting-zone-5-shrubs.htm
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/gardening-by-zone/zone-5/zone-5-privacy-hedges.htm