Garden Q&A: Portuguese laurel hedge is almost bare. Why?

Whether you're a gardening beginner or expert, Irish Examiner columnist Peter Dowdall has the answer to your questions

Question

I have a Portuguese laurel hedge planted around my house. 

It is experiencing failure that has almost spread throughout the entire hedge. 

At the moment approximately 60%-70% of the hedge is bare, with few leaves. 

There is evidence of shotholes throughout the hedge.

Answer

The hedge is suffering from one or more fungal infections. 

The yellowing and brown spots on the leaves are most likely all caused by a fungal problem such as powdery mildew and leaf spot pathogens. 

The shothole that you describe could be caused by the shothole bacteria are could also be a result of the leaf spot disease where the infected spots eventually fall out of the leaves. 

A drench with copper sulphate mixed with water on the entire hedge and the ground beneath will certainly help. 

Remove any infected debris (leaves and twigs) from around the base of the hedge and feed well with good plant food such as the organic, Irish-produced Nature Safe Atlantic Seaweed liquid feed.

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