Wildlife friendly hedging plants

LLM · 27 February

Hello there!
We are planning on removing our boundary fence and replacing it with a hedge to provide shelter and food for the variety birds that we see in our area.
Suggestions welcome for fast/medium growing evergreen hedging plants that will survive partial shade, a bit of wind and some clay soil. Evergreen required to provide privacy to our property.
Thanks in advance!

bergin.lim92996 · 27 February

I have just planted some pyracantha for the same reason-evergreen, wildlife, winter shelter and food for birds, sturdy. Apparently can be hard pruned easily for hedge. Chose this over yew for a bit more colour too, and winter berries.

Bilje · 27 February

I love my beech hedge both the standard green and copper. It’s not evergreen but if trimmed at the end of August it retains its Autumn leaves until late spring then it’s new growth is a delight..like-small pink prawns. Birds love it for shelter and small insects live in it greefly etc so small birds feed on them.

thevictorian · 27 February

I would suggest pyracantha as well as its reliably evergreen, is great for the bees and then later the birds. The birds prefer the red berry cultivars but will eat the orange ones as well. The sparrows like nesting in it here.

Berberis and cotoneaster might be worth looking at as well if you would like a mixed hedge and of course their are the hollies to consider. All should do well in your conditions.

bédé · 27 February

I inherited a large Berberis, I don't know what species/variety. It would make a good impenetrable hedge. It was spiny and had small pink/pIurple evergreen leaves. It had orangey-yellow flowers that regretably had a disgusting smell. Our reactions to smell are all rather different, so check it out before investing.

Mine has been removed.

Fairygirl · 27 February

if you can give more detail about your general location and climate @LLM, that will help with advice.

Many plants which do well in the south, or in dry conditions, won't necessarily do well where I am, and vice versa.
For example, I grow Pyracantha and Berberis in those conditions, and both cope well with clay soil, wind, rain and everything else thrown at them, but things like Griselinia and many Pittosporums, wouldn't do so well. Be aware that not all Berberis are evergreen though. Some Viburnums and evergreen and have flowers for pollinators and offer good shelter for birds etc.
Like Beech, Hornbeam is a similar hedging plant - foliage stays in place through winter if it's kept below around 10 to 12 feet, and is generally coppery like Beech, but Hornbeam copes much better than Beech in very wet sites . Privet is semi evergreen, but in mild areas it stays largely evergreen. If left to flower - you could leave some plants to get to that stage, it's good for insects/pollinators.

LLM · 27 February

Fairygirl said:

if you can give more detail about your general location and climate @LLM, that will help with advice.
Many plants which do well in the south, or in dry conditions, won't necessarily do well where I am, and vice versa.
For example, I grow Pyracantha and Berberis in those conditions, and both cope well with clay soil, wind, rain and everything else thrown at them, but things like Griselinia and many Pittosporums, wouldn't do so well. Be aware that not all Berberis are evergreen though. Some Viburnums and evergreen and have flowers for pollinators and offer good shelter for birds etc.
Like Beech, Hornbeam is a similar hedging plant - foliage stays in place through winter if it's kept below around 10 to 12 feet, and is generally coppery like Beech, but Hornbeam copes much better than Beech in very wet sites . Privet is semi evergreen, but in mild areas it stays largely evergreen. If left to flower - you could leave some plants to get to that stage, it's good for insects/pollinators.

Were in South Wales so typically rains quite a lot 🤣 but nothing too extreme.

Thanks all for your suggestions so far, very helpful!

Redwing · 27 February

In addition to the above recommendations I can confirm that Hornbeam (which retains it's old leaves in winter) and privet are good. Blackbirds and other thrushes like to eat privet berries and privet hawk moth caterpillars feed on the leaves. You could add in a few spindleberry, euronomus europeaus, for interest, not evergreen though, but thrushes will feed on the berries when everything else has run out. Holly is a good addition too, though slow growing, but will attract holly blue butterflies as well as thrushes who like the berries. I would also add the odd wild rose, not evergreen but will attract pollinators and thrushes in winter.

DaveGreig · 27 February

My hedge is predominantly Lonicera Nitida. It’s very dense, evergreen and provides nesting sites for blackbirds, hedge sparrows, robins and wrens plus the occasional willow warblers at the base. It’s noticeably more difficult to cut than the lengths of beech, Lawsons cypress and privet that I have but it seriously outperforms these for wildlife habitat. If allowed to flower it hums with the pollinators visiting it.
i hate cutting it though.

Fairygirl · 28 February

That's a good shout too @DaveGreig, although I'm surprised you find it difficult for trimming/pruning. I've never found that.
I've had various types in several gardens, and have just started replacing my existing hedge with it - some grown from cuttings.
Another good plant is Cotoneaster - there are several types, and many are evergreen. Great for pollinators and berries for birds. Tough as old boots too

Just bear in mind that the wildlife you attract also depends on where you are @LLM so it's always worth asking around, or doing a bit of research, before making your final decisions. For example, lots of insects/butterflies etc aren't present here where I am, but may well be present in your locale.

Dovefromabove · 28 February

How tall and how wide do you want your hedge to be eventually? Some hedges are of most value to wildlife when they’re allowed to produce flowers and fruit, but many need to be quite large before they do that, and if they flower on growth produced then previous year then regular trimming will result in considerably fewer flowers and fruit.

Wildlife friendly hedging plants

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