deciduous shrubs for screening

Hello all,am in the process of preparing for a hedge to screen off neighbours trampolineBorder soil is prepared,and have planted one Laurel,but as local bylaws say hedge any height,as long as only one evergreen,im looking for advice on best deciduous shrubs to plant,im looking for fast growing,to hide the eyesore soon as,ideas fo best screening appreciated,and also looking for nurseries where i can buy very tall shrubs to establish the hedge post haste,and will drive anywhere in the uk to pick up.
Any advice very welcome,as been racking my limited brain for sometime.

Thanks Howard

 

Hi Howard,

Are you sure about that Bye-law - it does seem a bit odd to preclude the most traditional of hedgeing, such as Yew, Laurel, Pyracanthus, Cotoneaster or good old Privet.

You could consider tall vegetable, but of course these would only cover the view for part of the year. (Runner or climbing French beans, Jerusalem Artichokes)

Another alternative could be a row of espalliered or fan-trained fruit trees.

 

Hi Howard,

What about Beech? It's deciduous, makes a good hedge and holds its leaves most of the winter.:WINK1:
Shop around, you may be able to get some decent sized bare rooted this time of year

 

Forgot about that one - now here's a link:

Visitscotland Meikleour Beech Hedge Meikleour Forest/Wood Welcome

Of course, by the time your hedge gets this big, next doors children will have grown out of the trampoline !

 

Are you sure about that Bye-law - it does seem a bit odd to preclude the most traditional of hedgeing, such as Yew, Laurel, Pyracanthus, Cotoneaster or good old Privet.

Hi alex, ive a 6ft panel fence,and kids heads are popping up over it,so need a hedge about 8 foot.If done with only evergreen,the neighbour could get the council involved and claim im shadowing his garden(and he is a funny sod) so know he would,and id have to reduce the height.
Phoned the council "Luton Borough" who told me as long as only 1 evergreen
and the rest deciduous i can go as high as i want.

So ive Planted a large Laurel, that should make the height this coming year,border has been dug 2 spits deep,peat and fish/blood and bone added,and before planting put some Rootgrow mycorrhizal fungi under the rootball,to give it a kickstart.

My knowledge of hardy shrubs is pretty limited,so opinions very valuable to aid my success in creating a nice screen...will definately now go for beech for a yard of it,but need about three other types now as would like some variation.

Many thanks for replies so far,very helpful
Regards howard

 

here's another suggestion:

at one of the homes I work at, we dug a hole and placed the trampoline (with it's frame) into the hole, with the trampoline jumping surface level with the grass .... was hard work as we dug by hand with spades/shovels

that was 2 years ago .... children are now older, so the safety frame/netting has been removed and you cannot even see the trampoline unless you go close

was an eyesore on it's frame as the garden is small

 

Would you be permitted to add some trellis to the top of the fence and grow climbers through it? - roses, honeysuckle, clematis or wisteria.

 

as far as I am aware, the UK hedge law states that if a hedge has more than 3 species of the same plant, the neighbours can ask you to trim it back ....

there is a formula that they work to, based on the length of the hedge, and depending on the length, it can be higher than 2 meters

so, I stand to be corrected, buy you can plant 3 evergreen of the same species next to each other

I recently visited a garden that had a hedge of Leylandii that was approx 10m high (or higher) ... their property was next to an industrial site .... they could not even grow grass, as all the light was blocked out and the lawn was basically moss

just be carefull and don't ruin your own garden (block out all the sunlight)

 

Hi alex,it did cross my mind about trellis and climbers,but cept for the dreaded
russian vine,would take a couple of years to cover....good idea though

Dim. Though i want to block out the offending trampoline,specially as the moron next door has shoved it near my fence,and not the middle of his garden,or should i say worn out grass.
Im not looking to spoil his light or mine,so soon as the desired height is accheived,ill keep it trimmed,dont mind going up my stepladder even though im an old fogie:o

Regards Howard

 

I would go for the likes of Crataegus (hawthorn). Prunus spinosa (blackthorn/sloe) and Carpinus (hornbeam).

 

no probs, but check out the hedge law forum ... as I said, I am sure that I read that you can have 3 evergreen of the same species ... prob with deciduous is that it is only effective for approx 9 months of the year

here is a fast growing deciduous one called wonder hedge ... Turkestan elm .... grows 3m in 2 years .... perhaps you can buy larger ones to speed things up ... (I have not seen one yet, but spotted this on the internet a few months ago)

http://www.wonderhedge.co.uk/

another option may be fast growing bamboo, but you would need to use a root barrier .... and will save you trimming (choose one that grows to the height you require) .... bamboo is a bit pricey though

 

Daitheplant. Thanks for your suggestions,i think hawthorn may be a good choice for part of the hedge.

Dim,thanks for the link,wonderhedge looks a good one to try,has an amazing growth rate.

All the best Howard

 

Beech was mentioned, which is a good choice because although deciduous, it usually keeps hold of its leaves over winter.

Also maybe consider willow. There are hybrid ones that are bred for their speed of vertical growth. Here's a link to one supplier (that I've never used, its just to give you an idea): Willow Cuttings, Rods, Whips, Salix Viminalis Living Structure, Sculpture, Dome, Tunnel, and Fedge kit, hedge

Buddleja is another option. From its second year on it will easily grow to 8ft+ in a single year, and is very pretty is looked after.

I'd double check the laws though. I would never take the council's word for it, because no offence to council workers, but every time I've spoke to them it does seem that they make a lot of mistakes. There is a law about hedges not exceeding 8ft, but I'm not sure of the details, and I'm not sure when how the laws differentiates between a hedge and a stand of trees.

 

Hi Howard

Re the source of your plants, I use http://www.shrubsdirect.com who do an excellent selection at a very reasonable price (and the service is excellent from my experience)

 

for larger shrubs/trees, try these sites

http://www.architecturalplants.com/

Large Trees, Mature Trees, Hedges and Ivy Screens from Impact Plants