novocastria wrote in message . ..
I live in the Fens which is VERY windy at times due to the lack of trees
and being VERY flat!

The original native cover on the fens would have included a lot of
Alder and Willows of various types were grown and pollarded both
before and after drainage. After drainage it became traditional to
plant Plane trees to form a windbreak, although many of these are now
extremely large and provide thier windbreak 20 feet up in the air.
Hedgerows may have been of 'laid' hawthorn or even Oak. I don;t
remember seeing Beech, but it would survive quite well as a laid
hedge.

You don't say how big a plot you have, and how close to the house you
want to go. All of the species mentioned above can be invasive or get
out of control, but a well managed hawthorn hedge should be fine,
especially if you mix other species into it, like the guelder rose or
dogwood. It used to be traditional to plant damson or plum trees
among the hedgerow and let them grow to standards.

There are huge numbers of leylandii hedges on the fen, they grow
quickly and well and provide quick windbreaks. I would regard that as
a temporary solution while something else got established, except they
will take a lot of nutrient from the soil.