New garden in new build. Hedge?

cubatahavana

Hello, we have purchased a new build and we’re looking to place a hedge around our back garden. We would like to plant mature plants (150-180m tall).

Any ideas of where we could go to have a chat with someone who knows? Any ideas of which plants to use?

We are based in South County Dublín

looksee

Presumably there is a wall all round your garden? This will create some issues, though not insurmountable. It will influence what you grow though.

If there is a wall there will be concrete footings, you need to know where they are and how far they reach into the garden, so you can clear them when planting the hedge.

Have you a lawn laid? You would be advised to dig all round the edge where the hedge will go and remove all the rubbish, lumps of concrete, stashes of sand, plastic, insulation and other stuff that has been covered with an inch of topsoil. Also loosen the areas that have been compressed by machinery. If you don't have a lawn you would be advised to do this all over the area.

You would really be advised to treat the walls as separate planting areas as they will be facing in opposite directions and get different amounts of sun, and some areas may be permanently shaded by the house or adjacent houses.

If you are working with walls you could consider some sturdy 'climbing' shrubs that will grow against them. Some varieties of cotoneaster, or pyracantha is another option that will grow up a wall while not exactly climbing. If you put in hedging it could be rather sparse until it clears the wall especially on the shady side. If it is fencing leave a decent distance between the hedge and the fence so that the hedge has room to grow and does not push the fence over.

Finally, while very tempting, hedging as tall as that is likely to be for massive hedges, laurel for example or griselinia - anything that grows very tall is also going to be wide, how much space can you spare? Somewhat smaller plants are likely to get off to a better start and may be more suited to your garden.

So, after all that, what are the existing boundaries, how big is the area, are you urban or rural, what end result are you looking for, how sunny or shaded is the garden?

cubatahavana

Thanks for the answer!

This is the backgarden. Orientation is southeast. We are in an urban area and I presume in summer a fair amount pf sunlight will reach it. Basically we would like the fences to be girly covered.

Reckless Abandonment

Personally I'd paint the fence and put a few tree here and there. ( definitely down the back.) A hedge would take to much space up. Them kids will need all the space they can get.

looksee

Oh lord yes! I agree with RA, don't think of putting a hedge in there, you will lose your garden. Certainly put a couple of nice medium sized trees at the bottom to just distract the overlooking from the houses opposite. You could get a couple of well grown trees 8 or 9 ft high which will get you well on the way to 'furnishing' your garden. Maybe a silver birch and something with flowers - not a double 'cherry blossom' (they are nice for a couple of weeks in spring but then are kinda boring for the rest of the year) but there are other prunus trees (cherry etc) that are pretty and not so dark, or crab apple, rowan - that's more for berries, holly can be very nice - as it grows take off the lower branches so it becomes a tree rather than a massive bush. Lots of possibilities.

CelticRambler

Are those fence panels 2.4m wide? If so, I'd be inclined to agree with Reckless - you'll lose a quarter of the garden if you plant a hedge down each side. What's your reasoning behind having a hedge? Is it for privacy, or for vertical visual interest?

If it's for privacy, I'd be inclined to set up a few high trellises in front of the panels (particularly at the back) and grow leafy climbers instead. Along the sides, I'd opt for something along the lines of a 2m-wide trellis, 2m gap with a single tree in it, another trellis, another tree, and so on; and a low-maintenance, child-resistant border about 90cm deep filled with low-growing plants. That'd create the illusion of extra space even though you'd be nibbling away a little on each side.

Outkast_IRE

Agree with the above , what you need here is some various plantings, not a continuous hedge. You will want to maintain access to the wooden panels for the most part. They will need a coat of something in this climate sooner rather than later if you want to extend their lifetime.


I would actually think a forest green /sage fence paint or similar and some smart planting will massively improve the feel of that garden. The concrete posts can be painted too if you desire, just do a neat job and it will look smart.

cubatahavana

looksee wrote: »

Oh lord yes! I agree with RA, don't think of putting a hedge in there, you will lose your garden. Certainly put a couple of nice medium sized trees at the bottom to just distract the overlooking from the houses opposite. You could get a couple of well grown trees 8 or 9 ft high which will get you well on the way to 'furnishing' your garden. Maybe a silver birch and something with flowers - not a double 'cherry blossom' (they are nice for a couple of weeks in spring but then are kinda boring for the rest of the year) but there are other prunus trees (cherry etc) that are pretty and not so dark, or crab apple, rowan - that's more for berries, holly can be very nice - as it grows take off the lower branches so it becomes a tree rather than a massive bush. Lots of possibilities.

Thanks for all the help. Would trees not block sunlight? We will definitely look into it. I know nothing about trees, but the crab apple looks very nice

Reckless Abandonment

As looksee said rowan( great all-year tree) or birch would work well. They can be keep to a manageable height easily and don't block to much sun. Climbers are a good idea too, just be careful which ones you go for some can grown into a hedge if not pruned regularly .

Silver Breeze

You're on the Johnstown Road? If yes, walk up to Hill's Hire, turn left, walk to the end and chat with the extremely knowledgeable folk at Murphy and Wood Garden Centre. I've dealt with them for years, their advice is golden and free.
Wear a mask.

cubatahavana

Silver Breeze wrote: »

You're on the Johnstown Road? If yes, walk up to Hill's Hire, turn left, walk to the end and chat with the extremely knowledgeable folk at Murphy and Wood Garden Centre. I've dealt with them for years, their advice is golden and free.
Wear a mask.

Will do! Just checked and those guys are literally next door!

I would definitely plant along those fences, on all sides. You don't want to cover the wood, but you would want to provide some screening above the height of the fence.

For me the obvious solution is a pleached hedge. You could use pleached fagus sylvatica, pleached carpinus betulus, pleached tilia x europaea palida (or euchlora), pleached evergreen oak, pleached parotia persica, or even pleached apple (malus).

You could expect to pay 400 euro, plus planting, per tree. Roughly speaking, this is the effect in summer and winter for pleached tilia:

Alternatively, you could plant a row of narrow, columnar trees to provide partial screening. Trees like Prunus serulata 'amanogawa' planted in a row on all sides would provide some screening, seasonal interest, and would not take up much space. They will remain compact at 6m high and only 3ft wide. They are also cheaper than pleached trees.