Hello, I'm planning on getting a hedge planted along a fence line. I called up a company that will do it for me, and they said for an 80 foot fence they would plant 120 trees that are 3-4' tall, planting them rootball to rootball. Does that seem like too many trees for that space? Thanks
I would never plant a hedge root-ball to root-ball. What specific kind of tree are we talking about here, Thuja occidentalis 'Smaragd' (very popular) or something else?
Perhaps this is a C. thyoids. Camaecyparis, also known as a False Cyprus? Or a Thuja occidentalis L. also known as a Eastern white cedar, which is more likely as used more for hedging. Perhaps ask the company what the scientific name is of the "Ontario White Cedar" so that you first know what you are going to be dealing with before putting in a work order. Also ask them why they would plant rootball to rootball and ask them to then specify what the distance would be between the rootballs if any. Do some research and then decide if maybe you would like to shop around a bit more first because spacing requirements for a cedar hedge is approximately two feet apart or 18 inches, give or take. Planting rootball to rootball is not recommended for obvious reasons. The roots need Some room to spread out. For an informative resource to planting a cedar hedge, check out Planting and Pruning a Cedar Hedge (pdf file)
