Hello.
I am reluctantly forced to erect a 10m long x 1.2m high wire fence and plant
along this 16 thorn hedging plants.
This for a neighbour who is seriously pressuring me. Rather than fight the
issue, I just want to get it done. We have been neighbours for 50 odd years
and I don't particularly want to fall out with her.
Fencing is no problem I can do that well myself but the plants are giving me
a problem. I am black fingered as opposed to green.
She says they must be 80-100 cm height pot grown, and specifies Pyracantha,
Mahonia, Berberis & Gorse.
Her main objective being to grow an impenetrable fence.
Plot is just W of London. W facing with fairly open aspect and 1m from a
stream. This stream was extremely lively a month ago. Hence the problem.
Any suggestions for plants and suppliers please.
Many thanks,
Nick.

"Nick" wrote
I am reluctantly forced to erect a 10m long x 1.2m high wire fence and
plant along this 16 thorn hedging plants.
This for a neighbour who is seriously pressuring me. Rather than fight the
issue, I just want to get it done. We have been neighbours for 50 odd years
and I don't particularly want to fall out with her.
Fencing is no problem I can do that well myself but the plants are giving
me a problem. I am black fingered as opposed to green.
She says they must be 80-100 cm height pot grown, and specifies Pyracantha,
Mahonia, Berberis & Gorse.
Her main objective being to grow an impenetrable fence.
Plot is just W of London. W facing with fairly open aspect and 1m from a
stream. This stream was extremely lively a month ago. Hence the problem.
Any suggestions for plants and suppliers please.

Pyracantha I can understand but why not plant our native Blackthorn which
will give you Sloes for your Gin or even our native Hawthorn, both of which
are better for our native wildlife and a lot cheaper.
You can buy these more cheaply from hedging suppliers. eg...
http://www.hedgesdirect.co.uk/?gclid...FQnpwgodeI8ACg
http://www.best4hedging.co.uk/?gclid...FUsUwwodcKsAEg
--
Regards. Bob Hobden.
Posted to this Newsgroup from the W of London, UK

On 22/03/2014 17:44, Bob Hobden wrote:
"Nick" wrote
I am reluctantly forced to erect a 10m long x 1.2m high wire fence and
plant along this 16 thorn hedging plants.
This for a neighbour who is seriously pressuring me. Rather than fight
the issue, I just want to get it done. We have been neighbours for 50
odd years and I don't particularly want to fall out with her.
Fencing is no problem I can do that well myself but the plants are
giving me a problem. I am black fingered as opposed to green.
She says they must be 80-100 cm height pot grown, and specifies
Pyracantha, Mahonia, Berberis & Gorse.
Her main objective being to grow an impenetrable fence.
Plot is just W of London. W facing with fairly open aspect and 1m from
a stream. This stream was extremely lively a month ago. Hence the
problem.
Any suggestions for plants and suppliers please.

Pyracantha I can understand but why not plant our native Blackthorn
which will give you Sloes for your Gin or even our native Hawthorn, both
of which are better for our native wildlife and a lot cheaper.
You can buy these more cheaply from hedging suppliers. eg...
http://www.hedgesdirect.co.uk/?gclid...FQnpwgodeI8ACg
http://www.best4hedging.co.uk/?gclid...FUsUwwodcKsAEg


I'd also go for hawthorn, otherwise get Bare root Berberis Atropurpurea,
they should grow away well and make a very prickly hedge, good flowers
and followed by berries.
Have a look at

http://www.ashridgetrees.co.uk/hedgi...i-atropurpurea


or Berberis Thunbergii which doesn't grow so tall

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/20-Japanes...-/231042142098

I'd plant at around 20 inches apart so you would need all 20 plants.
David @ a showery side of Swansea Bay

On 2014-03-22 19:35:49 +0000, David Hill said:

On 22/03/2014 17:44, Bob Hobden wrote:
"Nick" wrote
I am reluctantly forced to erect a 10m long x 1.2m high wire fence and
plant along this 16 thorn hedging plants.
This for a neighbour who is seriously pressuring me. Rather than fight
the issue, I just want to get it done. We have been neighbours for 50
odd years and I don't particularly want to fall out with her.
Fencing is no problem I can do that well myself but the plants are
giving me a problem. I am black fingered as opposed to green.
She says they must be 80-100 cm height pot grown, and specifies
Pyracantha, Mahonia, Berberis & Gorse.
Her main objective being to grow an impenetrable fence.
Plot is just W of London. W facing with fairly open aspect and 1m from
a stream. This stream was extremely lively a month ago. Hence the
problem.
Any suggestions for plants and suppliers please.

Pyracantha I can understand but why not plant our native Blackthorn
which will give you Sloes for your Gin or even our native Hawthorn, both
of which are better for our native wildlife and a lot cheaper.
You can buy these more cheaply from hedging suppliers. eg...
http://www.hedgesdirect.co.uk/?gclid...FQnpwgodeI8ACg
http://www.best4hedging.co.uk/?gclid...FUsUwwodcKsAEg


I'd also go for hawthorn, otherwise get Bare root Berberis
Atropurpurea, they should grow away well and make a very prickly hedge,
good flowers and followed by berries.
Have a look at

http://www.ashridgetrees.co.uk/hedgi...i-atropurpurea


or Berberis Thunbergii which doesn't grow so tall

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/20-Japanes...-/231042142098


I'd plant at around 20 inches apart so you would need all 20 plants.
David @ a showery side of Swansea Bay

Berberis have pretty flowers and are evergreen. Eleagnus would do a
good job and Rosa rugosa, while not being evergreen has very lovely
flowers and hips and ferocious thorns.
http://www.hedgesdirect.co.uk/acatal...FdShtAodiWoAkA

I don't quite understand the water reference? If the stream was that
lively, is it likely to endanger your planting if there are more heavy
rains? No hedge will keep out a serious inundation and thorns will
make no difference at all, so I hope that's not what your neighbour is
expecting?
--
Sacha
www.hillhousenursery.com
South Devon

On 22/03/2014 17:44, Bob Hobden wrote:
Pyracantha I can understand but why not plant our native Blackthorn
which will give you Sloes for your Gin or even our native Hawthorn, both
of which are better for our native wildlife and a lot cheaper.

Why not alternate blackthorn and hawthorn? Then you get a longer
flowering season.

Andy

On 22/03/2014 15:43, Nick wrote:
Hello.
I am reluctantly forced to erect a 10m long x 1.2m high wire fence and plant
along this 16 thorn hedging plants.
This for a neighbour who is seriously pressuring me. Rather than fight the
issue, I just want to get it done. We have been neighbours for 50 odd years
and I don't particularly want to fall out with her.
Fencing is no problem I can do that well myself but the plants are giving me
a problem. I am black fingered as opposed to green.
She says they must be 80-100 cm height pot grown, and specifies Pyracantha,
Mahonia, Berberis & Gorse.
Her main objective being to grow an impenetrable fence.
Plot is just W of London. W facing with fairly open aspect and 1m from a
stream. This stream was extremely lively a month ago. Hence the problem.
Any suggestions for plants and suppliers please.
Many thanks,
Nick.

If you are intending to put 16 plants in a 10 m run, you aren't going to
get an impenetrable fence. With one plant approximately every 60 cm,
there will be a lot of bare space low down. Or is the wire fence
intended to deal with that, and the thorny hedge everything above 1.2 m?

In general Mahonia isn't the fastest growing plant. Pyracantha is an
absolute thug - it will reach 3+ m in no time, but it will also spread
sideways, both along and across the wire fence. It will need maintenance
to keep it under control. Berberis is pretty good and can be fairly
fast; something like B. julianae should be suitable.

Rosa rugosa would also be a good choice as it could use the wire fence
for some support at the start.

At this time of year I would tend to go for containerised plants, rather
than bare root, unless you can ensure they are never short of water
whilst getting established (don't count on the stream doing this if the
level is low). Even with containerised plants you will need to an eye
on the water to make sure the plants don't dry out.

--

Jeff

On 22/03/2014 15:43, Nick wrote:
Hello.
I am reluctantly forced to erect a 10m long x 1.2m high wire fence and plant
along this 16 thorn hedging plants.
This for a neighbour who is seriously pressuring me. Rather than fight the
issue, I just want to get it done. We have been neighbours for 50 odd years
and I don't particularly want to fall out with her.
Fencing is no problem I can do that well myself but the plants are giving me
a problem. I am black fingered as opposed to green.
She says they must be 80-100 cm height pot grown, and specifies Pyracantha,
Mahonia, Berberis & Gorse.

Pyracantha is good and you can get versions with different colour
berries, mahonia won't hack it, some berberis is ok, you will regret
planting gorse in a garden. Blackthorne and hawthorn are pretty good for
stock proof hedges. I'd buy bare root in autumn - its much cheaper.
(and I think they tend to establish faster than soft pot grown ones)

You could think about sneaking in the odd honeysuckle, bramble, rosa
rugosa and much slower growing holly bush as interesting features.

I'd also plant in solid blocks of about 3m each. That is how one of my
hedges is done. I don't like long solid monotonous uniform hedge. YMMV

Her main objective being to grow an impenetrable fence.
Plot is just W of London. W facing with fairly open aspect and 1m from a
stream. This stream was extremely lively a month ago. Hence the problem.
Any suggestions for plants and suppliers please.
Many thanks,
Nick.

You mean it washed away the old fence?
You might be best off with fresh willow sticks then!

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

On 24/03/2014 15:14, Martin Brown wrote:

You mean it washed away the old fence?
You might be best off with fresh willow sticks then!

That's assuming a lot.
I have a hedge of Berberis Thunbergii as the side of a roadway leading
to a works, 4 ft from it on the other side is a stream, but it's 5 to
6ft lower than the hedge.