What's the best hedge for privacy?
With so many hedges to choose from and a huge selection, where should you start when looking for a hedge for privacy in your garden?
Firstly, you should decide whether a fast growing hedge is something you’ll be able to maintain. Or if a slow growing hedge will provide you with the level of privacy you want.
Next, would you like your hedge to be evergreen or deciduous? An evergreen hedge will have foliage on it all year round, whereas deciduous hedges lose their leaves in the autumn until spring, which means they’ll be bare and won’t provide you with privacy.
Things you should consider before planting a hedge is whether it will cause a problem for your neighbour, will it restrict their light or cause arguments between you both?
You also need to consider that the first year of planting your new hedge, is when it will need the most attention, from watering to feeding. This is the time when it will need this in abundance to give it the best start in it’s new location.
Hedging plants also come in four varieties, bare root, rootballed, pot grown and instant.
Bare root and rootballed hedges are the most economical but can only be bought from November to March as this is when their roots are lying dormant, and they can be dug up and moved.
Once they arrive they have to be planted into their already prepped location so they can acclimatise and grow better. They often come in different sizes for you to choose from meaning you can have a hedge more quickly if you buy a bigger size.
Pot grown hedges are great if you don’t have time to plant them as soon as they arrive as they can stay in their pots for days and even weeks. These are available all year round too. If you want to create a hedge instantly then you can usually find instant hedging varieties which, when planted, look as if they’ve been there for years.
It can change the look of your garden, instantly.
So without further a do, here are a list of excellent hedges to help improve your privacy.
Privet
Quite possibly one of the best hedges you can have as a privet hedge, because it is evergreen and fast growing but doesn’t get to an unnecessary height. In fact if you want your hedge to reach around eight feet then this will be perfect. You can also neatly trim it into any shape you desire.
Viburnums tinus
A hedge that has white flowers in spring, followed with pink buds during the winter months. They are great at providing height for privacy as well being able to cover an eye sore such as a wall.
Do bare in mind that not all of the viburnums are evergreen, so be sure to check whether it is deciduous or evergreen before purchasing.
Leylandii
A popular hedge for privacy but also a tricky one. The Leylandii will grow quickly and is evergreen so you won’t have to wait long for your hedge to provide you with the privacy you desire but it will need cutting back once or even twice a year to keep it at a decent height. If it isn’t trimmed then it can become out of control and grow well over forty foot.
Buddleia
Another wonderful deciduous hedge, that produces purple flowers and attracts a variety of wildlife including butterflies and bees. This hedge can grow tall and bushy and will need cutting right back once it has finished flowering but can hide an unsightly feature very quickly during the spring/summer months.
Photonia
The Photinia ‘Red Robin’ is a lovely evergreen hedge that produces red shoots and pretty, delicate white flowers in the spring. It makes for a great privacy hedge and produces a nice colour, which makes for an interesting change to the normal green colour.
Do also bare in mind depending on where you live that some hedges are restricted to be a certain height according to your local council. It would be worth doing research to check what is more acceptable and what isn’t where you live.
These restrictions have been put in place so neighbours and the community are not affected by the placements of hedges.
For more information the Hedge height and light loss document by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister for England, will help with calculating your maximum hedge height for your garden.
