Hedge Plants: Conservation Hedge Mix

Hedge Plants: Conservation Hedge

This native British hedge plant mix will produce a traditional mixed country hedge, great for wildlife. A recent study found a whopping 2070 species in a typical 85m stretch of mixed native hedge. The photo shows a mature example, around 2m high. It makes a good people and stock proof barrier.

Plants are selected from at least 5 species (see below) to give the hedge gives all year round interest. There will be flowers in the spring and summer, autumn colour, and fruit, nuts and berries in the autumn and winter. Our hedging is all British grown from seed harvested here and our hedge mixes have great species diversity. You'll find cheaper options elsewhere which include more (cheap) hawthorn, and plants grown overseas. Your hedge should reach around head high in 3 years, depending on conditions.

We offer this mix as either cell grown plants or bare root.

Bare root

We're offering two alternative sizes this year, both suitable for grant funded planting. 

The cheaper option for the 2024/5 season consists mostly of two year old 60-90cm plants. A couple of species may be 40-60cm, but are the same age - victims of a terrible growing season this year. Grown in either the Welsh borders or Kent from UK origin seed. Each hedge pack consists of 500 plants - enough for 100m in a double staggered row. 

The premium option is grown in Yorkshire. This mix consists of larger 60-100cm plants, and is available in smaller 50 plant packs for 10m of hedge.

Cell Grown

These are smaller 20-50cm plants, which look more like jumbo plugs. They're available to plant from September to the end of April, so a longer season than the bare root plants. Partly for this reason and partly on grounds of cost, these kind of plants are widely used in commercial forestry. We sell them in a minimum quantity of 150, enough for 30m of a typically spaced hedge (see below).  Buy either with or without canes and biodegradable guards. 

Value For Wildlife

Managed sympathetically you will create a thick hedge which will be a real boon for a range of wildlife, including small mammals, birds, bees and other insects. Not only do native hedges give wildlife a safe habitat and food all year round, they also act as safe corridors for movement. Oh, and of course we can use the fruit and nuts which this conservation hedge mix will produce too.

Good For Security, Privacy And The Environment

Traditional hedges aren't just pretty. They kept livestock in fields for hundreds of years before barbed wire, and do just as good a job keeping people out. They're excellent security hedges, including dense spiky species. The impenetrable barrier they form also make a very good privacy hedge. Many of the species here are fast growing too - any mix like this one based on Hawthorn (synonym "Quickthorn") will establish very fast. It turns out too that mixed hedges like this are really good at reducing particulate pollution in cities. They can help with flood control too, particularly in urban situations. They're a stupidly overlooked carbon sink too.

What's In The Hedge Mix?

Like many hedges across the UK, the premium and standard conservation hedge mix options are based on Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), giving structure, spikeyness (is that a word?), speed of establishment, and high value for wildlife. The Hawthorn makes up 50% of the mix, and the other 50% is 5 other mixed native species (more for multiple packs). We chose from these species, according to availability: Crab apple (Malus sylvestris), Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa), Dog rose (Rosa canina) or another native rose, Field Maple (acer campestre), Hazel (Corylus avellana), Wild cherry (Prunus avium), Guelder rose (Viburnum opulus), Common dogwood (Cornus sanguinea), Wild privet (Ligustrum vulgare), Common Buckthorn (Alnus frangula) and Beech (Fagus sylvatica).These are plants which will establish well in a wide variety of conditions including shade, are widely distributed across the UK, and traditionally found in hedgerows. If you have horses and they will be able to graze the hedge when it is established, you might prefer our stock friendly hedging, which is also made up of native British hedging plants. Please note this is not available in the cell grown size.

This mix also has only 50% Hawthorn, unlike many you can buy, which include higher %s of this relatively cheap plant and less of the other stuff. If you wanted a higher proportion please ask.

How Do I plant My Hedge?

To make a stockproof hedge, whips are usually planted at 5 plants per metre in a staggered double row, or 7 plants in a triple row. Weirdly, DEFRA are currently requiring 6 plants a metre in a double row for grant aided schemes. Plant each species in a small group of 3-5 plants, and each row 50cm or so apart. We sell our conservation hedge bare root whips in packs of 50 or 500 plants, so enough for 10m or 100m of hedge (with discounts for larger numbers). You might want to plant a wider, less dense hedge, which would not be stock proof but helpful for wildlife. In which case plant the rows up to 1m apart.Please look at our blog or video for help on establishment and maintenance.

Our Bare Root Hedge Plants