Up close

interior browning on a large transplant.. is one of the definitions of transplant shock ...

but its stressed.. not hungry.. so forget about fert ...

perfect water... i have no clue if twice a week is good or bad ... keep it MOIST deep into fall .. but dont freeze its roots into an ice cube ...

and hope for the best ... what more can i say ...

ken

Assuming they are getting near full sun (they demand a lot), then I am going to say it's an over watering issue. You don't say how many gallons you are providing per watering session, but anything over 1x per week this summer seems excessive for Leyland. I know it's been dry, but generally cool summer on the East Coast... and Leyland is about the most drought tolerant conifer I have planted. Mine have been in the ground 3 years now, so now supplemental water was provided for them at all this year, but even in year 1, I recall going very light on the water and they did excellent.

I would say 3 gallons 1x per week in stretches without rain would probably be more than enough for Leylands, but you need to check the soil for moisture.

OK, here's my followup. This is what it looks like now. It made it through winter....sort of....and just came out of dormancy. It is clearly alive, but a lot of foliage is dead. Do you think this thing will bounce back this growing season?

You may notice some green here and there, and there is actually a living leader on top.

Will it be ugly forever if I keep it?

FYI it is part sun once the trees above leaf out. Right now its full sun for another 3 weeks or so.

Thoughts?

Ok...so I went to take it down, and noticed that it actually has a solid leader on top and is pushing some beginnings of new growth already...early for nj. See pic. If I let it grow for a year or two and remove the dead stuff next fall, wouldn't it have a good chance? I only need the top to grow for privacy.

Let it go until July -- it may recover or not. As you discovered, Leyland cypresses are not recommended any more -- too cold-damage and disease-prone.

yeah, you can "save" it
but if you can find a discount leyland somewhere for $10-$20 (I see roadside places in Lancaster Co, PA, still - after the last 2 winters - advertising them for similar low prices)...even if its only 2' high, it will have outpaced this one in 3 years because of the energy its going to spend on recovering from its current sad state.
Like Ken said...plant smaller...like beng said...plant something else, unless you're in the PNW

see what it does ... if there is life up top ... prune it up ... give it thru next spring ... then see above re: getting rid of it.. if it continues to lack vigor ...

no one ever learned anything new.. by giving up ... experiment ... whats to lose??

ken

Nurseries will often have a 1 year guarantee on trees/shrubs. If you bring it back they might give you a replacement or credit towards another species of tree. Call and see what their policy is, if it's guaranteed, you might have todig it out bring the tree back so they can assess the cause of death. If you wait longer than a year, you might not have the capibility to do so.