Can these cedar trees be saved?

[tamarack]

Hi everyone,
My cedar trees are mostly dead at the bottom (plants in front of them that blocked the light to the bottom of the cedars and I think this is why they look so bad at the bottom).

Is there anything I can do to save them or are they doomed to look like this forever??

The tops are doing well.

Thanks!

[nltaff]

Hi Tamarack, I have cedars like these that were eaten by deer and the idea of digging them out exhausted me (just thinking about it). You might see some new growth on the bottom there if you are willing to hedge-trim the green tops and prune a bit off the bottom dry branches. You might want to top-dress the soil, fertilize, water, and mulch to encourage growth. Mine are coming back, but it is very slow. The damage occurred two winters ago, and they are still looking sparse and bare, but filling in slowly.

[tamarack]

Thanks for the response!
I'll give that a try. I'm excited to think that maybe we can save them.. fingers crossed!