a well clipped box hedge can grow quite high (maybe 2-3 metres- online it says up to 9 metres!) but the higher it grows the more likely it is to get damaged by winds if its thin in width.
if you can let the box grow out a bit wider (maybe to the laurels width) you could easily take it to the height of the laurel hedge by the house, just make sure you give the upward growing stems a light trim one a year to cause it to side shoot and 'bush' and it should be nice and thick fairly quickly
I suggested a Privet hedge, tough as old boots and taller and others have suggested a fence. With a fence you can grow climbers up it on your side, like clematis.
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
You are sensible to establish where the boundry line is first, it does look as if the hedge is on ‘your’ side, if your house is the one to the left of the photos, assuming you each own 50% of the gap between the houses. But even if it is yours, given its a front garden I would question how much you really need or could create more privacy, given the houses are open to the front (are there covenants preventing you putting a hedge at the front?) and you will probably still pass your neighbours in the street more than on the short journey from your front door to the pavement. Unless they are holding wild parties on their patch of front grass!
Have you considered that you might make relations worse? For example, if they start complaining about a higher hedge blocking their light or views, even if it is within the legal high hedge constraints, or refuse you permission to enter their garden to trim it on their side. If you still want to go ahead, I would agree with Buzy-Lizzie that privet would fit the bill.
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
thanks for this... I am concerned about a fence at the front, as we do get a lot of wind channelled across our front... also, i am not 100% the hedge is ours to remove and replace as yet... thanks for the advice though!
@Nollie... the relationship with the neighbours are none existent and we don’t speak and for good reason, i don’t use the term horrendous lightly unfortunately. our aim is more privacy at the front separating the properties and also along the front out our property to act as shelter from the wind, which blows stuff right into our front garden...
Who cuts the existing hedge? If it's you, I suggest letting it grow taller and wider gradually. Trim enough to keep it tidy, but leave it a bit bigger each time and see how it goes. A gradual change might be less likely to cause an adverse reaction from the neighbours. You could trim it so that it's taller near the houses and slopes down towards the pavement end to avoid any visibility issues for drivers (including yourself if you have a driveway that you use).
Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
Definitely don't plant leylandii there! I inherited it in our last house and it was a nightmare.
I'd always advocate something like hawthorn or a mixed native hedge for the wildlife value, plus seasonal interest from flowers and fruit. If you want something that doesn't go bare in the winter, beech or hornbeam hedges look lovely. Don't know how fast they grow though...
It’s such a shame you have horrible neighbors and that you dont speak. I was just concerned that if you plant a higher hedge they may not welcome the extra work of trimming ‘their’ side. You can offer to trim it, which gives you control of its shaping, but strictly speaking, need their permission to enter their garden to do it, which requires talking to them! I think JennyJ’s suggestion is a good one if you already do all the trimming, gradually increased privacy by stealth without the hassle of planting a new hedge. You could simply extend it with the same hedging plant at the front (providing this is permitted on your estate).
Privet is pretty fast growing, but as for all new hedges, they take time to fill out and establish, so won’t provide so much privacy for the first couple of years.
Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
You could also consider putting up a few 6x6ft trellis panels on your side, leaving the hedge as it is. Trellis is often exempt from any front garden fence height restrictions (3ft max. is very common.) That would immediately give partial screening and you could then grow climbers up it, such as clematis and roses. There are evergreen clematis (other suppliers are available) such as 'Freckles' which will cover it relatively quickly and give year-round screening with the bonus of flowers (mine is in full bloom now but flowers appear in fewer numbers randomly throughout the year.)
A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
It's quite difficult to see whose hedge that is... I'd suggest you're very careful not to antagonise the horrible neighbours by removing it, if there's a chance it's theirs. Better to put up a fence just your side of it if you're not on speaking terms. You can have trellis on top and grow pretty plants up it, perhaps.
I've lost count of what number I am in the "don't plant Leylandii" vote. But please don't! You'll hate the fact that you have to maintain it regularly, and whatever you do you'll still have a monster which takes light and moisture from your garden...
Since 2019 I've lived in east Clare, in the west of Ireland.
Posts
I suggested a Privet hedge, tough as old boots and taller and others have suggested a fence. With a fence you can grow climbers up it on your side, like clematis.
Have you considered that you might make relations worse? For example, if they start complaining about a higher hedge blocking their light or views, even if it is within the legal high hedge constraints, or refuse you permission to enter their garden to trim it on their side. If you still want to go ahead, I would agree with Buzy-Lizzie that privet would fit the bill.
Is Privet fast growing?
Who cuts the existing hedge? If it's you, I suggest letting it grow taller and wider gradually. Trim enough to keep it tidy, but leave it a bit bigger each time and see how it goes. A gradual change might be less likely to cause an adverse reaction from the neighbours. You could trim it so that it's taller near the houses and slopes down towards the pavement end to avoid any visibility issues for drivers (including yourself if you have a driveway that you use).
I'd always advocate something like hawthorn or a mixed native hedge for the wildlife value, plus seasonal interest from flowers and fruit. If you want something that doesn't go bare in the winter, beech or hornbeam hedges look lovely. Don't know how fast they grow though...
Privet is pretty fast growing, but as for all new hedges, they take time to fill out and establish, so won’t provide so much privacy for the first couple of years.
I've lost count of what number I am in the "don't plant Leylandii" vote. But please don't! You'll hate the fact that you have to maintain it regularly, and whatever you do you'll still have a monster which takes light and moisture from your garden...