Photina Red Robin

Hello
I’m new to this forum and hope to be an active member.
I’m in need of a little help with my hedge. Photina Red ribbon. My pride and joy.
The Attached photos somehow my problem, they are shriveling up and look burnt.
the hedge is in a big open garden and looks all elevations and gets sun 3/4 of the day ones side and 1/2 the other.
The hedge was planted 2 years ago and I’ve never had a problem. Every year around April I throw some organic compost under the hedge and re lay a new soaker hose on top. Waters the hedge for 60minutes twice a week. Then I water as well
if it looks dry. When I do the grass.
around a week ago it started dropping its leaves and now it looks all burnt. I’m at a loss. I’m gutted because I’ve spent so much time making it look beatutfull and all seems to be going to hell.
can anyone help me diagnose my problem? It has also rained here in the Uk nearly lone stop for two weeks.
Thanks everybody in advance

 

Probably just some frost damage which can happen to new growth in spring that has not hardened up enough to cope with the late frosts we have been getting. A lot of plants can be effected and can recover fine. I'd be reluctant to be continuously watering an established hedge. If it is in the ground two years it should have had plenty of time for the roots to settle in and travel deep enough in the ground so they can survive from the water naturally in the ground. Being a bit too generous with plants like those used in hedging can lead to abundant soft new growth and this can be more effected by adverse conditions like frost.

 

Agree totally with @Macraignil , its just frost damage that many of us have suffered from with these late Artic Blasts and frosts, as long as the weather remains frost free you should see new shoots on the branches in a few weeks.

Red Robin is a very hardy plant and needs minimal care, though a good feed as you are doing each spring is good.

However your watering is not, as because of your regularly watering it will bother putting down enough roots to search for water by itself in a dry period. At 2 years old it needs to look after itself.

We often trim the tips of the fast upwards growing spring shoot as this encourages a busher plant.

 

Oh right.
The soil is very sandy and drains very fast. I also have massive surrounding trees that lietarally suck the ground dry.

how and when should I be watering? How do I know when it’s needed?

 

Hi,

How tall and wide is the plant now and how big are you wanting it to grow to ?

If is so free draining and so much competition then fair enough to give it some water in hot dry spells.

Red Robin can become very big, up to 4 mtr tall, but if you are looking for something more managable, eg under 2mtrs and its likey to be badly affected by the surronding trees and soil, you could put it in a large tub in some better soil, though that may need even more regular watering.

 

Hi
The photinas form my hedge which is around 50m long. Currently it’s 1.5m ish wide and between 1.75 and 2.4 m tall but thin and not bushy like it used to be.

I have massive Christmas trees on my north lawn and the drinks the lawn dry.
In summer I have to have a minimum 2 hrs a day on the lawn or the lawn dies.
I would like the bushes thick and fat at around 2.4m

 

Hi,

Like any similar bush, if you cut back the main shoots it will form sideshoots which will make the plant bushier.
eg if its 1.8m high now with some weak upright growths, then cutting them back to about 1.2m may sound drastic, but the new sideshoots it creates will make it bushier as it grows back up.
This time of year they are putting on a strong growth spurt and is a good time to prune.
There are lots of references and videos on pruning Red Robin.

However with such poor soil conditions, eg water and nutrients, caused by those big trees you might not be able to grow the Red Robin or other plants to their full potential.
Also you say you put some muck around them once a year, but then put the hose on them for a long time, so wonder if all the nutrients are being washed away by the excessive watering.

Consider using some general Liquid fertiliser, eg Liquid Growmore, once a month in the growing season and put it on a hour after you have done the watering so the roots will be have chance to take it up.