Suggestions on front garden hedges

Idioteque

Hi,

We've just tarmac'd our front drive and have some decorative kerbing about half a meter from the wall running in an L shape around the front wall and then up the wall we share with our neighbour. Front wall is approx 3.5 meters and side wall approx 5 meters. The space between kerb and wall has the soil that was already there before we dug up lawn. There was some rose bushes planted in this space originally.

We'd like to have some greenery to look out at as well as providing some privacy from front and neighbour's side.

I'm a complete gardening novice so no idea what is practical. Would like to ideally plant something that doesn't need a lot of maintainence, maybe just trimming back twice yearly. Also, we'd like to buy something already matured to at least 1.2 meters and will probably stop it around 1.6-1.8 meters.
From some googling I'm thinking Griselinia or maybe Laurel.Front garden is North-East Facing.

Any suggestions or let me know what other info you'd need.

smokie72

Would you ever consider golden privet? Have mine in the front garden nearly 30 years now and it gives privacy and only need pruening maybe 3 times a year.

phormium

I love griselinia myself and have a lot of it. It's easy trim, will need a few trims throughout the growing season and will grow taller than you want if you let it BUT I lost all of it in that bad frost few years ago. I had to replant it all and yes of course I could have gone for something else but I like it and hopefully we won't get another bad frost like that for a long time.

I also lost a pittosporum hedge which was gorgeous and have replaced this with lonicera which again needs a few trims but has nice small little leaves and looks well. I have mine trimmed into a wavy pattern on top which I love for some reason, it's the little pleasures!

I like laurel too, again it will grow tall if left alone and I think it might be better suited to a very big garden, I'm sorry I didn't actually plant that around my back garden rather than leylandii hedge. I don't think the laurel looks great when you trim it as the leaves are very big and you have a lot of chopped leaves for a while, that's why I like a small leaved one for a small hedge like the lonicera or pittosporum.

looksee

Agree with phormium, though I can't share the enthusiasm for grislinia, and it is better nearer the south coast where it is not likely to get the frost you can get in Dublin. Lonicera is a great little hedge, though you have to trim it right from the start. Don't be tempted to let it get to height before you cut it, it will grow straggly. Keep trimming it little and often in the early stages and it will make a nice hedge.

The photinia Red Robin makes a nice red hedge, again you have to keep trimming it a couple of times a year to keep it bushy, but it is very easy.

phormium

I am right down on the coast by the gulf stream and the frost still got my hedge

I suppose one of the main reasons I like griselinia is the ease of trimming and the colour, it's lovely and soft stemmed and easy to cut. I had that other stuff, can't think of the name of it, looks kind of similar but different shade of green and leaves are light coloured underneath. A fine hedge too but much harder work to keep trimmed as it's more woody and will grow like a small tree if left alone.

The lonicera is lovely and the frost did not affect it, exactly as you said even though I really really wanted it to grow above the wall for privacy I resisted the urge and kept it trimmed initially. It's very easy to trim and I like it neat although my sister has some and she likes the wild look! It's scraggly as hell.

I remembered, it was Olearia

Mgit

phormium wrote: »

I love griselinia myself and have a lot of it. It's easy trim, will need a few trims throughout the growing season and will grow taller than you want if you let it BUT I lost all of it in that bad frost few years ago. I had to replant it all and yes of course I could have gone for something else but I like it and hopefully we won't get another bad frost like that for a long time.

I also lost a pittosporum hedge which was gorgeous and have replaced this with lonicera which again needs a few trims but has nice small little leaves and looks well. I have mine trimmed into a wavy pattern on top which I love for some reason, it's the little pleasures!

I like laurel too, again it will grow tall if left alone and I think it might be better suited to a very big garden, I'm sorry I didn't actually plant that around my back garden rather than leylandii hedge. I don't think the laurel looks great when you trim it as the leaves are very big and you have a lot of chopped leaves for a while, that's why I like a small leaved one for a small hedge like the lonicera or pittosporum.

I like griselinia too and have recently planted loads of it, did you know you can get sheets of special garden fleece about for about €10 each to cover the hedge in case of a major frost again which should save it, also my mum never cuts it after june for its well healed by winter, hers all survived that big freeze in 2010 when neighbours who cut later in year had theirs die

Car99

Portugese laurel, nice looking hedge, hardy and slow growing , trim once a year.