Selecting the correct hedging

I have an area 50 feet long and would like to plant a hedge which ideally would grow to no more than 4 feet high. I have ruled out Box as it is so slow growing. Suggestions greatly appreciated.

 

hows about hawthorn?? it's popular and VERY sharp .or maybe leylandii (hope i spelt that right) it's a fast growing conifer(well supposed to be) often used for hedging. or even holly. never grew a hedge before though so don't know if that helped you or not :/

 

It all depends on the type of hedge you want?; formal, wild, evergreen, deciduous, mixed?, but you could go with either, Portuguese Laurel (a big favourite of mine), Privet, Holly, Pyracantha, etc for a formal looking evergreen hedge. They all grow more than 4ft ultimately and will need annual pruning eventually as would any hedge. Berberis also makes a nice hedge but is deciduous.

You could as suggested plant a traditional hawthorn hedge or you could go with a mixed native hedge if it fits the situation; hawthorn, blackthorn, hazel, holly, oak, guelder rose, elder etc... this would make a fantastic hedge that wildlife would love.

Good Luck :thumb:

 

I would go with the old faithful, Privet is semi evergreen, has highly scented white flowers and is easy to look after. The Golden varieties are more appealing to the eye.

 

I'm in the process of growing my own Ceanothus hedge from cuttings, it's evergreen with blue flowers in summer. Top height approx 4ft. It will be replacing an old and dying hedge of potentilla, same height but that's not evergreen, has small flowers right through summer, available in various colours.