Janet Baraclough
wibbled on Wednesday 21 April 2010 16:44

The message
from Tim Watts contains these words:


It's a matter of taste but I don't think yew and hawthorn look good
together; their growth habits are incompatible and anyway I don't
think yews will thrive with that amount of competition.

Good point. It is my intention to remove the hawthorn completely in stages,
but as I don't have time this year for such an ambitious project, I thought
I should at least start a new hedge growing in the gaps.

As for the hawthorn, I hate handling the stuff. Cutting 7' off has destroyed
a pair of heavy welding gauntlets. I only allow roses if growing back
against a fence - any that "get in my face" get the chop too. I like soft
and fluffy plants Luckily the garden comes with lots of nice "meadow"
flowers, rhododendron, rosemary, pussy willow and lots of random bushes
that look cute. Not many places left for weeds, which is how I like it.
Lawn and bushes - that's me.

If I really had to fill in gaps I'd follow nature's example and use
very small plants of plain green holly, which is one of the few
evergreens/hedgeable plants that will self -seed into the dry shade of
an established hedge

Despite the above, Holly is the only spiky plant I don't mind, because the
prickles are very short and don't tend to get past leather. I could allow
the exist holly to establish a bit - I have one tree and a couple of small
self seeded plants.

I would get small, bare root stock, grown in open ground, from a
forestry nursery supplier (too late for this year) because any
pot-grown fill ins will struggle to ever extend their roots beyond their
own pot-shaped
planting medium. The roots will go round and round , a recipe for failure.

OK - that's interesting to know. Probably a next year project now anyway.

Failing that, if you know anyone with a big fruiting holly in their
garden they probably have scores of tiny seedlings all over the place.

That's me - though I only have a couple of seedlings - mostly because the
garden was so overgrown. It's pretty clear now - just moved the grass,
raked out some broken glass by the site of a previous greenhouse and
de-twigged the lawn. Much better

Holly makes a superb hedge

Janet

Thanks for the comments Janet

Cheers

Tim

--
Tim Watts

Managers, politicians and environmentalists: Nature's carbon buffer.