Soft fruit hedge

Evening all.

I've been thinking about how to separate my new patio from my lawn. I've kind of nearly decided to plant a small soft fruit hedge, so that the patio is almost a separate part of the garden.

I was thinking:

Currents (red and black)
Blueberries
Some sort of very compact plum trees
Strawberries in those cascading planter thingies you can get.
NOT Raspberries, too invasive.

I was also thinking of chucking a Japanese maple or two in there, and/or a couple of azaleas or some other purely ornamental shrubs.

Any thoughts on this? What about other fruit options?

Also, I think most of the things on my list prefer acid soil. I haven't measured the pH yet, but given that its clay, not waterlogged, and been left alone for a long, long time, I suspect its about neutral. Will I have to dig a trench and fill it with ericaceous compost?

 

At your age Dave, I would go for a Wild Service Tree and a Medlar as well. They'll be ok on a neutral soil.

 

Have you considered Cherry Plums (Myrobalan/Prunus cerasifera)? They can be used for neatly clipped hedging or grown into trees. Must take a pic next time I'm at Buckingham Tescos as they have both in the car Park there. I'm using them for an edible hedge windbreak around my poly tunnel area.