Garden Hedge advice

[gonzo]

Hello fountains of knowledge!

My garden has a brick wall and it's not doing so well. In one place, it's only being held up by a telegraph pole! Cracks were appearing and then some scrotes decided to knock the top of my wall off.

Here it is in streetview:
GL51 8AX - Google Maps

Another problem is that a lot of my garden is actually to the side of the house and with the current wall height (varies between 4 and 7 ft depending which end you're at), it's basically like a front garden with no privacy.

Anyhow, I'm thinking about replacing it with a hedge. I'm after the following characteristics:
- Security. I want to keep people from walking through the hedge to cut off the corner of the pavement.
- Safe. Next door is a primary school. Also want to keep them out of my garden!
- Sight lines. I'd like to actually be able to use the garden to the side without people being able to look in.
- Things that tweet. These would be good. There are cats locally though.

What would you guys recommend? What sort of cost am I looking for about 15meters of hedge? Also, how long would I be looking at to get a full size hedge do you think*?

*I'm guessing that I'll wait for the hedge to grow up then I'll take down the brick wall. How sensible is this?

[Tim]

How long are you committed to the house - hedges aren't a particularly instant solution (but some will grow quicker than others).

[Kim]

Quick growing hedges are a work of Stan.  Especially if your available method for disposal of green waste involves ludicrously thin plastic bags, but also if you'd rather go for a bike ride than trim the hedge all over again.

[gonzo]

I'd like to have a hedge tomorrow, but accept that's not likely! Getting at least a waist high hedge within the year would be great.

I've got a garden waste weely bin FWIW.

[Charlotte]

In my experience, non-runners with expired MOTs, jacked up on bricks and filled with domestic waste, automotive parts or poorly socialised terrier-cross dogs make a surprisingly good job of impromptu boundary demarcation.

[Biggsy]

How long are you committed to the house - hedges aren't a particularly instant solution (but some will grow quicker than others).

            Elveden Instant Hedges | Instant Hedging | Evergreen Hedge
       

The prices aren't on the website, though, so you can bet they're shocking.

[Tim]

How long are you committed to the house - hedges aren't a particularly instant solution (but some will grow quicker than others).

            Elveden Instant Hedges | Instant Hedging | Evergreen Hedge
       

The prices aren't on the website, though, so you can bet they're shocking.

Should have figured - if people are willing to pay, someone will be willing to sell the product. They do include holly in their list of hedges which would perform a reasonable job dissuading people from trying to walk through it.

[Mr Larrington]

Get the wall rebuilt.  Remember Murdock's Gardening Law: if it's green then the paving isn't finished yet.

[Biggsy]

*I'm guessing that I'll wait for the hedge to grow up then I'll take down the brick wall. How sensible is this?

Will the wall overly shade the hedge?  (Leaves like light).

[rafletcher]

I'd like to have a hedge tomorrow, but accept that's not likely! Getting at least a waist high hedge within the year would be great.

I've got a garden waste weely bin FWIW.

Best bet IMO is to buy English native trees - hawthorn, beech, whitebeam etc.  from a specialist nursery. Plant a staggered double row. You'll have a reasonable height (1.75m or so) in 3-4 years. And the beeches keep their (brown) leaves through the winter so it's not all bare branches.  And hawthorn is thorny!

[hairyhippy]

We use firethorn - again slower going than you want, but nobody is going to want to go through it.

[CAMRAMan]

I planted a privet hedge from very small cuttings I got off eBay 2 1/2 years ago next to a wall I wanted to cover up. Only now is it anywhere near the height of the wall in places and even then coverage is patchy. I haven't fed it much - except this spring - but it wouldn't act well as a lone boundary yet. Maybe another year or two.

Have you considered willow screening? My kids school has erected a willow screen fence and it's very effective at being both a boundary & a screen. It won't have been cheap, but I don't suppose it cost a fortune either, as the budget for the whole project wasn't vast. Have a look here.

[Wobbly John]

If you are going for a hedge for security, I'd go with Berberis - Attractive red/purple colour, visious thorns, copes well with shade.

Alternatively Lonicera nitida will form a dense hedge without the thorns and is reasonably cheap. I've got several of the yellow 'Baggensens Gold' variety in the garden. It is very easy to grow from cuttings and I had about 40 young plants a couple of years ago, but I gave most of them away.

[gonzo]

Thanks for the tips chaps. Sorry I didn't reply sooner; I lost this topic as it was moved to a board I had on ignore!

Also, some VERY good points that made me re-think the whole thing but now think I've got it sorted. Knock front garden wall down short, plant hedge behind it. Until the hedge grows, put up wooden fence to block the line of sight into garden.

Thanks again guys!

[andyoxon]

I recently planted a section of Escallonia hedge, from cuttings I took from a lone bush in the garden - evergreen & reasonable quick growing.  Laurel will form a dense hedge and many garden centres will sell large plants, but the hedge has to be 'maintained' to avoid getting out of control...

[Marj]

Laurel does form a nice hedge but if cut with an electric hedgetrimmer the half cut leaves will all turn brown.  It does look nicer if cut back with secateurs, but that of course is very time consuming.

[rogerzilla]

Quickthorn is good.  Yew grows quicker than most people think and makes a superb hedge but it probably contra-indicated where schoolkids can eat the berries.