There's no such thing as "the best hedge." There's the best hedge for your garden, your soil, and how much effort you actually want to put in. Five questions worth asking before you buy a bundle of bare-roots:
- Coastal or inland?
- Chalky, sandy or heavy clay?
- Sun, shade, or a bit of both?
- Evergreen needed, or does winter look not matter?
- How fast do you need it, and how much trimming can you face?
That answers most of it. Here's the shortlist we'd recommend for the most common East Kent scenarios.
Coastal gardens (Sandwich Bay, Deal seafront, Kingsdown)
Salt spray and wind are the enemies. A lot of "normal" hedges just sulk or scorch. Go with:
- Griselinia littoralis, glossy, bright green, evergreen, honestly brilliant by the sea. A bit tender in a bad winter.
- Escallonia, pink or white flowers, tough, salt-tolerant. Needs a trim after flowering.
- Tamarisk, feathery and atmospheric, loves sandy coastal soil, but it's more informal than a formal hedge.
- Hardy laurel or Portuguese laurel, for sheltered spots back from the front line.
Chalk and free-draining soils (much of East Kent)
Most classics do well here. Our usual suggestions:
- Yew (Taxus baccata), the best hedge ever invented, frankly. Slow, but once established it lasts centuries. Perfect for chalky soil.
- Beech, holds coppery leaves through winter, loves chalky soil. One cut a year.
- Hornbeam, very similar to beech, handles wetter ground.
- Privet, fast, cheap, doesn't care about soil much.
Heavy clay gardens (some of the inland villages)
Clay is nutrient-rich but waterlogged in winter. Pick species that cope:
- Hornbeam, champion of clay soils.
- Hawthorn, tough, wildlife-friendly, flowers in May, berries in autumn.
- Blackthorn, thorny, secure, great mixed with hawthorn in rural boundaries.
- Field maple, good mixed into a native hedge.
Shaded spots (north walls, under mature trees)
Most hedges need reasonable light. For proper shade:
- Yew, again. Copes with deep shade better than almost anything evergreen.
- Box, for a low formal hedge in shade. Watch for box blight.
- Holly, evergreen, shade-tolerant, slow but dense.
Security / "keep people out"
Prickly species only:
- Hawthorn, proper English thorns, thickens up beautifully.
- Blackthorn, the spikier of the pair. Mix both for a proper country boundary.
- Holly, evergreen security, a bit slow.
- Pyracantha, fierce, flowering, fast.
Fast and cheap
Honest answer: if you've got the patience, don't plant leylandii. We know it sounds quick, and it is, but it's a two-decade mistake for most gardens. Alternatives:
- Privet, only a little slower, infinitely more forgiving.
- Thuja plicata (western red cedar), looks similar to leylandii, less aggressive, more forgiving of mistakes.
- Hornbeam or beech, faster than people think if fed properly in years 1–3.
Our honest take on leylandii
We cut plenty of them and we're glad to. But if you're planting from scratch, almost anything else is a better long-term call. Read our leylandii guide for why.
Wildlife hedges
A mixed native hedge does more for garden wildlife than anything else you can plant. The classic mix:
- Hawthorn (about 60%)
- Blackthorn (10%)
- Field maple (10%)
- Hazel (10%)
- Dog rose, guelder rose, holly (10% combined)
Plant bare-roots in November or December, about 5 per metre, staggered in two rows. Brutally cheap from the RHS or a local nursery. In three years you've got a proper hedge that feeds birds, bees and hedgehogs.
The hedge you plant today is the hedge your grandkids will be trimming. Take an extra hour to pick the right species.
Planting advice, free
We don't plant new hedges (it's a different skill set) but we're always happy to chat about what would suit your garden. Drop us a line.