Hedging plants - need some advice please

For reasons of privacy I need to plant a fair bit of hedging. Must be evergreen AND very fast growing. I don't want to spend a fortune, but realise it won't be dirt cheap! There's quite a bit to cover in various patches of my large garden (I'm partly plugging moderate sized gaps and partly covering longer strips), perhaps about 100 feet in total.

Eventual height of the hedge needs to be about 6 or 7 feet and I'm happy to prune it when necessary to keep it bushy and of the correct height.

Must provide good cover/density all year round.

I've thought of maybe a mixed hedge - what plants would go well with each other without one competing with and swamping the others?

The soil they would be planted in is of variable quality, but nothing 'nasty' (ie not heavy clay for example).

Can anyone make any recommendations please?


Thanks

 

Not Lleylandi !!!!!

Try http://www.bucknur.com/acatalog/index.html
to chose, scale and calculate

Also steal cornus etc from your neighbours/parents etc. Dont buy them as they are so easy from cuttings.

Good luck

 

MOL, is that your house? Its fabulouse..

 

ESCALLONIA C. F. BALL.

Colourful fast growing evergreen with small, glossy, deeply toothed dark green leaves. Masses of tubular crimson-red flowers from June to October. Excellent for seaside areas or sunny positions, but not suitable for cold positions exposed to cold drying winds.
HEDGE Trim after flowering. For hedges 3-7ft (0.9-2.1m). Plant 1.5-2ft (45-60cm) apart.
SHRUB 8ft x 5ft (2.4m x 1.5m).

Price per plant for

1+ 5+ 50+ 250+
Pg 1-1.5ft
30-45cm �£2.29 �£2.15 �£1.98 �£1.72

Escallonia rubra macrantha is what i would choose. it requires little attention and flowers all summer long.
ideal for windy and seaside hedging frost hardy to -10

 

How about out a nice Yew Hedge

http://www.hedgesdirect.co.uk/acatalog/yew.html?gclid=CMmugpPzrZECFQ2nGgodQkFreQ

 

Thanks but it's apparently slow growing.

 

Barra - thanks, will look into that.

 

Why ever not MOL? if you're able to keep it trimmed back a few times a year nothing works as well as it. We had a lovely hedge at our old house and although it is hard work clipping it back it is dense and can look really smart.Hel.xxx.

 

Speaking of Leylandii, I was thinking of getting a few for another part of the garden. Where is a good place to buy them online, ie good ones but not too expensive?

 

I recently(last autumn) planted 7 of them which were to hide neighbours garage. Looking forward to seeing them grow this year!
I'll have to keep on top of them though!

 

Leylandii are fine for a fast growing barrier, but you really do have to get on top of the pruning at an early stage. Stop them about 1' short of the intended final height. Planting a mixed colour hedge with a few yellow ones will improve the look.
We had 60' or 70' of leylandii hedging for years, but I've now got rid of it as I got fed up with the twice yearly trimming.

 

Escalonia is a very good sudgestion.

I cut large quantities of leylandi in the summer months it wouldnt be my choice for my own garden.

My sudgestion would be laurel either the normal type or the spotted one.

 

TMH, if you want to use conifers in the hedge then go for Thuja plicata atrovirens, The Western Red Cedar. It is slower growing than Leylandii, has aromatic foliage, will regrow if any bits go brown and only needs trimming once a year. Other good, informal, hedging plants are Griselinia, Eleagnus and Viburnum tinus.

 

Thanks to you all, some great advice there.