Hedges with Flowers

Flowering hedges can be grown from evergreen hedging plants or deciduous and whilst giving definition to a boundary or using as a dividing hedge within the garden they also add vibrant displays of colour throughout the seasons. The flowers and/or foliage of some varieties are also scented, adding another dimension to your flowering hedge. (We also have a scented hedge list)

Many flowering hedges will also continue their interest with a crop of berries later in the season, sometimes the berries are even more colourful than the flowers!

Ornamental flowering hedges can still be tall and effective barriers offering eye level privacy and shelter if evergreen species such as Berberis darwinii, Choisya, Osmanthus burkwoodii or Pyracantha are chosen. There are also many beautiful deciduous flowering hedges that will attain a similar size such as Flowering Currant, Forsythia, Spiraea Snowmound and various types of Plum Hedging Plants.

Many other flowering hedges are small and more ornamental in nature, these are very much at home as internal hedges, edgings or features. We grow a lovely selection of Lavender hedging plants, Cotton Lavender, Sweet Box (Sarcococca hedging plants), Potentilla hedging in various colours, Rosemary and smaller types of Spiraea.

When making your choice of hedge deciding on which season or seasons the flowers would be shown to best advantage in your garden is probably the first criteria. Hedging plants such as Blackthorn best known for their abundance of Sloe Berries in early autumn produce amazing displays of white blossom akin to a fall of snow settling on the branches in spring bringing early interest to gardens.

Larger growing summer flowering hedges such as Escallonia which have red, pink or white flowers subject to the variety chosen or  Cotoneaster Franchetti with its white flowers touched with red and followed by a profusion of orange-red fruits in autumn make an excellent back drop to lower growing smaller flowering hedges such as Potentilla with their pretty orange, pink, yellow or red flowers or Lavenders which come in many shades of blue or purple and are often used to edge pathways and borders both for their flowers and perfume

A very attractive variety of flowering hedge is the Pyracantha also highly recommended as a security hedge this very prickly plant is smothered in white blossom late May and early June followed by masses of berries in autumn.

Flowering hedges are easy to maintain as light clipping of any wayward shoots or branches ensures no loss of flowers or berries which can happen if too heavily clipped. The pollen and nectar produced by flowering hedges are an irresistible draw to birds and bees and create a haven for wildlife.

Flowering hedges can also be a key ingredient in a tapestry hedge mix, this type of hedge uses hedging species with various foliage colours planted in blocks of colour, often with flowering species mixed in for extra interest.