Laurel Hedging

Further Information about Laurel Hedging

Laurel hedge plants are one of the most popular hedging types available. Native to southeastern Europe and northwest  Asia, they have since become a common plant available across the UK and northern Europe. Laurel hedging was first introduced to the UK in 1576, as a gift given by the Ambassador to the Emperor of Constantinople.

Aside from conifers, Laurel hedges are one of the fastest-growing evergreen hedges, making them ideal for screening and privacy. Gardeners often use Laurel to help create a secluded outdoor space that they can enjoy in the privacy of their own homes. 

Gardeners also opt for Laurel hedging due to the ability to grow it almost anywhere. Laurel will grow in deep shade or full sun, making it one of the most resistant and easily-established hedging types available.

Types of Laurel Hedge Plants

Here at Hopes Grove Nurseries, we offer a wide range of Laurel hedging varieties, so you’re bound to find one suitable for your needs. We offer the following varieties of Laurel hedges:

• Bay Laurel (Laurus nobilis) is an excellent evergreen for hedging or topiary and is the same plant that yields the aromatic bay leaves used in the kitchen and is considered to have many health benefits.
• Common Laurel (or Cherry Laurel) is incredibly popular and the fastest-growing variety. It has beautiful glossy evergreen leaves and is available from us in a wide range of sizes including bare root and root ball hedge plants to potted and instant hedging.
• Caucasica Laurel is similar to Common Laurel and grows at least as fast but with a slightly more upright growth and with narrower leaves. It is particularly tough and hardy making it ideal for all types of evergreen hedging.
• Etna Laurel is a very bushy compact variety of Common Laurel that covers particularly well, this plant is more suitable for cold and exposed sites, dense shade and even near the coast.
• Portuguese Laurel is a particularly attractive variety that has smaller, elegant glossy deep green leaves and rich purple-red stems. It is the hardiest variety of Laurel hedging that we supply.
• Compact Laurel (Prunus laurocerasus ‘Otto Luyken’) is an excellent smaller variety of Cherry Laurel that is ideal for Laurel hedges up to a metre in height.
• The Spotted Laurel (Aucuba japonica ‘Variegata’) is in fact from a different plant family but has similar large evergreen leaves that are splashed with yellow. It makes an excellent fast-growing and low-maintenance hedge.

As a general guide three plants per metre in a single row is perfectly adequate for a new Laurel hedge, for faster results you could use 5 plants per metre in a double row for bare root Laurels and potted Laurel hedging up to 90/120cm in size.

Care Tips for Laurel Hedge Plants

We have written extensively about how to care for Laurel hedges, so please view our knowledge base pages for the answers to common queries about how to care for Laurel:

How fast does a Laurel hedge grow?

Different species of Laurel grow very differently. From slow growing Bay Laurel Bay to fast growing Caucasica Laurel, you can expect anywhere between 15-60cm of growth a year.

When is the best time to trim a Laurel hedge?

The best time for trimming is either in Spring (before growth has started) or in mid-late Autumn (when growth has finished); any later and the hedge could be susceptible to damage from frost.

What is the best fertiliser for Laurel hedges?

This depends on how established the Laurel hedge is – for freshly planted hedges, bonemeal is best. Be sure to mix it evenly through the soil for the best results. 

Check our guide on How To Make Laurel Hedging Grow Faster for more information on getting the most from your laurel hedging

What are the most common pests and diseases for Laurel hedges?

Laurel hedging tends not to be bothered greatly by pests and diseases, especially once established, but some problems to look out for include powdery mildew, shot hole and leaf drop.

Are Laurel hedges poisonous?

All Laurels with the exception of Bay Laurels are poisonous to humans and animals alike if ingested. For something animal-friendly please look at our variety of paddock and horse-friendly hedging for the ideal alternatives. With the exception of Bay Laurel, which is fine to consume. Most varieties are toxic to dogs and livestock, so we’ve listed a number of suitable alternatives if you require hedging in areas where you have animals roaming.

What kind of conditions are best for Laurel hedges?

Laurel hedges will struggle in soil that is poorly drained and becomes waterlogged in wet weather, and some varieties struggle with chalky soil and other slightly challenging conditions. It also does not fare well in exposed and windy sites with the exception of the hardy Portuguese Laurel which can withstand tougher conditions.

Laurel Hedge Spacing

It’s important to get your Laurel hedge spacing correct so growth and density is how you want it to be. We advise three plants per metre so that’s approximately one plant every 30cm for a single row hedge. For a staggered double row plant up to five plants per 1m which will work well for bare rooted plants and smaller potted plants. Double rows will create a denser hedge sooner but a single row of Laurel hedging is perfectly adequate as they do soon fill out.

Best Time to Plant Laurel Hedging

It is important to know the best time to plant a Laurel hedge to help ensure your new plants establish and thrive, filling out into a dense evergreen hedge. The time of year is dependant on which plants you decide to start with. 

Bare root Laurel plants can be planted between November to April when the plants are dormant. This is the cheapest option. 

Root ball plants should be planted between October to May and will give an instant hedging look that will fill out further in time. 

The best time to plant a Laurel hedge if you start with potted plants is all year round unless the soil is waterlogged or frozen. These are delivered still in the pots they have grown in with no root disturbance.

How High Does Laurel Hedging Grow?

When deciding which variety of Laurel hedging you would like to grow it’s a good idea to know how high Laurel hedging grows first. Depending on the variety the mature height can be anywhere between 1m to 5m, but Laurel is easy to keep to a maximum height that you want it to be, with regular pruning. 

Cherry Laurel and Portuguese Laurel can grow up to 5m whereas a more compact Laurel such as Prunus laurocerasus ‘Otto Luyken’ will grow up to 1.5m and Spotted Laurel up to 4m. 

How to Feed a Laurel Hedge

If you are wondering how to feed a Laurel hedge, you’ll be pleased to know it’s a very easy task to complete in late spring. When first planting a Laurel hedge we recommend using Empathy Rootgrow which is a mycorrhizal fungi and is added into the planting hole. This will help the root system to establish. 

For an established Laurel hedge, an annual feed of a well balanced fertiliser such as Growmore can be applied by forking into the soil surface without disturbing the roots before mulching the soil around the plants with an organic mulch such as bark chips, lawn clippings or homemade compost. 

Older Laurel hedges may sometimes need a boost and can be fed with a fertiliser to encourage root and top growth along with improving leaf colour if they have become pale. Seaweed feed and after plant feeds will work well. These can either be gently incorporated into the top few centimetres of soil or applied diluted in water and sprayed into the soil. Mulching on top will also help to retain moisture.

Why Choose Hopes Grove Nurseries?

Hopes Groves Nurseries are renowned UK hedge specialists, growing and tending to a number of hedge varieties for the benefit of homeowners and green-fingered gardeners across the UK. From Privet hedging to Birch hedge plants, we’re known nationwide for our great range of extremely high-quality plants. For over 30 years, we’ve perfected our growing and cultivating methods to bring you our fresh plants, delivered straight to your door.

Based in the UK’s Garden of England, our Kentish plants are lovingly grown and cared for across our multiple sites totalling over 80 acres. Our team have gathered knowledge about the half a million hedging plants we grow on-site. Our committed team members, from sales to planters, work tirelessly all year round to ensure your plants are in the best condition when they reach you. Our growers in particular work in all weathers, all year round, to make our business a success.

We grow the vast majority of hedging plants ourselves, meaning we have complete control over the growing process from start to finish. This means we can maintain the appropriate quality control measures required for fresh, high-standard plants. If you want to learn more about our Laurel hedge varieties, do not hesitate to contact our incredible team. We’re passionate about all things plants and would love to help you with your enquiries.

Take a look at our Laurel hedging range above, or simply get in touch with our exceptional sales team for more information.