Agreed. You could also make sure you include some Beech as it keeps its dead leaves until Spring. The hedges along our lane also include Gooseberries, very very prickly but productive. Much as I detest Roses, Rosa rugosa is a good hedging plant.
For a good thick hedge you would need to plant a double row, staggered. By that I mean that if you look straight down you would see a W shape where shrubs are planted at the points on the W. Hope that is clear.
You would need to buy some very thick gloves when it comes time to prune the hedge. I am still trying to remove splinters from when I trimmed our hedge a month ago.
This is why the RHS and others recommend the use of Botanical names. Many find it a bit pretentious but many plants have common names that turn out not to be so common after all. The same plant can be known by many names in different parts of the country. That said I still use common names more often than not.
Hawthorn is prickly, blackthorn is vicious. Wouldn't have it in my garden. I do have elder though, fast growing, edible flowers and berries, and dog roses (self knitting). Brambles and nettles turn up on their own but provide great food for wildlife (and a few blackberries for me). Hazel and beech are the hedging staples in this part of the world, with a few hawthorn and holly and also gorse which smells fabulous (coconut) and is never out of flower. Rugosa roses stand up to the wind, as does lilac. Eleagnus (both evergreen and deciduous - 'autumn olive') are reputed to be good hedging, being wind tolerant and nitrogen fixers but I've yet to get any planted. Bird cherry is a good wildlife plant as are bullaces (sort of wild plum) but apparently you shouldn't plant bullace near cultivated plums or you get crossed fruit (bitter). I have crab apples and cherry plums too because I like jam
Gardening on the edge of Exmoor, in Devon
“It's still magic even if you know how it's done.”
Hmmm I stand corrected. I don't know where I got my [mis]information but it makes more sense to me! I love the way blackthorn (sloe) looks in flower but like hawthorn better in berry.
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Agreed. You could also make sure you include some Beech as it keeps its dead leaves until Spring. The hedges along our lane also include Gooseberries, very very prickly but productive. Much as I detest Roses, Rosa rugosa is a good hedging plant.
For a good thick hedge you would need to plant a double row, staggered. By that I mean that if you look straight down you would see a W shape where shrubs are planted at the points on the W. Hope that is clear.
You would need to buy some very thick gloves when it comes time to prune the hedge. I am still trying to remove splinters from when I trimmed our hedge a month ago.
Quickthorn is blackthorn (sloe), because it flowers first and before the leaves are on, unlike hawthorn or "May."
As other people have said, quickthorn is hawthorn, not blackthorn.
This is why the RHS and others recommend the use of Botanical names. Many find it a bit pretentious but many plants have common names that turn out not to be so common after all. The same plant can be known by many names in different parts of the country. That said I still use common names more often than not.
Hawthorn is prickly, blackthorn is vicious. Wouldn't have it in my garden. I do have elder though, fast growing, edible flowers and berries, and dog roses (self knitting). Brambles and nettles turn up on their own but provide great food for wildlife (and a few blackberries for me). Hazel and beech are the hedging staples in this part of the world, with a few hawthorn and holly and also gorse which smells fabulous (coconut) and is never out of flower. Rugosa roses stand up to the wind, as does lilac. Eleagnus (both evergreen and deciduous - 'autumn olive') are reputed to be good hedging, being wind tolerant and nitrogen fixers but I've yet to get any planted. Bird cherry is a good wildlife plant as are bullaces (sort of wild plum) but apparently you shouldn't plant bullace near cultivated plums or you get crossed fruit (bitter). I have crab apples and cherry plums too because I like jam
“It's still magic even if you know how it's done.”
Hmmm I stand corrected. I don't know where I got my [mis]information but it makes more sense to me! I love the way blackthorn (sloe) looks in flower but like hawthorn better in berry.