Is my hypericum done for?

[seeyouinanotherlifewhenwearebothcats]

Hi all. I got this hypericum for a corner bed in a south facing garden. The man at the garden centre recommended it in this bed because it could tolerate shade. Since planting I’ve felt concerned it isn’t getting enough sun. There’s a large established camellia in front of it and we have a huge sycamore from the field next door overhanging. We’ve cut a large branch off it this week to try and help but I don’t think it’s looking great. I’ve given it a good soaking this evening. Do I just cut my losses and move it to a sunnier bed? p.s excuse the weeds in pic, they’re on the list 🙈

Eta the pic is not good. The bottoms half’s leaves are all yellowing

How long since you planted it there? I don't know about hypericum specifically, but most plants can take a bit of time to recover from being transplanted, I'd give it a month to see if it perks up.
(Actually, realistically I'd give it a year or two to get going, or not... I have a sink or swim attitude to my plants - don't have the headspace or organisation to be moving them around. They usually get going eventually with some food and water)

Hypericum is pretty bombproof; I'd leave it and give it some time to get its feet down. That said they are ok in partial shade but not deep shade so if it's really dark in there you may have to think again.

I’m surprised, OP. Hypericums are thugs- they spread all over my north facing front garden, and survive Scottish winters, snow, shade, slugs and overhanging bushes! I spend hours pulling and digging the damn things out every spring. Are you sure yours is actually a hypericum, or some less vigorous hybrid?

@allgrownupnow it’s been in about a month. Yeah I’ll keep up watering and hope for the best for time being.
@LadyGardenersQuestionTime I’ve got a pic of the whole bed but the trees are all filled out now and shading it. Perhaps too deep a shade? It’s behind that camellia on the left

@Babdoc I had thought so too and the man at the garden centre told me it would bloom like mad in there and spread. I genuinely don’t know. There was no label on it. I just asked him for a hypericum and he gave it to me!

I have one on the north wall of the house, in a niche between bay window and 5ft stone wall. Completely overshadowed on east by several 20ft Leylandi. It’s growing up through a Chaemomeles,and no matter how many time I cut ir back to base, it still flourishes

@MereDintofPandiculation thanks for this! Hopefully it’ll be ok in there. I’ll leave it for now and see

Are you perhaps over watering it? I quite like hypericum, but like a pp has said it can be thug. Getting rid of it when you don't want it can feel like a life's work.

@WeAreTheHeroes I don’t think so. I haven’t really watered it at all over the last two weeks. Then I feared I had underwatered?! So soaked it last night 🙊 Hopefully it settles in there.

A month is a very short time for a plant to settle in, give it a year or two and then reevaluate.

The only other thing which has come to mind is it properly firmed in to the soil? If not there could be an air pocket around the roots.

Update! My sad shaded hypericum is flowering!! So pleased 😊

Yay! That’s definitely a hypericum. I confidently expect you to be back in two years with a new thread: “Help, my hypericum has invaded my entire garden”…

I look forward to it @Babdoc

My hypericum bushes are absolutely massive! They look amazing when in full bloom.

Sooooo! Got a gardener in to trim back all the trees along the bottom of the garden so the hypericum could have more light….except he trampled the hypericum 😢 is it going to recover? Or should I get a new one?

Or should I get a new one?
A new gardener, you mean?

In my experience, nothing short of a direct nuclear strike will kill a hypericum, OP! The roots will be fine, and if necessary it will just push up new shoots from there.

😆😆 yes that too!

@Babdoc ok thanks! Should I cut broken bits back? Hopefully now it’s getting more sun I’ll see a big improvement

I would trim off any damaged bits, to reduce the chance of infection, but then just give it time to re sprout.
The bastard hypericums that seed themselves all over my flower beds reappear within a week or two of me hacking, pulling and trying to dig them out!

😂 ok thanks for your help. Hopefully mine doesn’t prove quite so vigorous!

I agree - Hypericum is a brute and a hooligan. I have it growing in the shady side of my south facing garden, and it's bombproof. It has been repeatedly trampled by rampaging children, covered in weed fabric, chopped down to the ground, dug out to several inches down, and still it thrives. It is very pretty and the bees love it, which is both lucky for me and it's saving grace.

@BewareTheBeardedDragon 😂 there’s hope for mine yet! I do agree they look fabulous when in full bloom.