wildlife friendly hedge

Kayte

Hi we have just moved into a bungalow and had the 30+ 20 foot high conifers chopped down and roots dug out! we are wanting to plant a wildlife friendly hedge in its place. Can anyone advise on must have species and how many we wluld need to make a 25 metre length hedge. It would be growing up against an 8 metre wooden fence in a very sunny position. Would bare rooted plants be most ecnomical? Where could I order them from? Thanks

nutcutlet

http://www.hedging.co.uk/acatalog/Index_Hedging__Trees__Shrubs___Conifers_1.html

A lot of my natives came from here. They sell mixes in the right proportions and are good at instructions. Go bare root in winter for cheapness and reliable establishing

GWRS

Hello , I have a hedge of Hawthorns which is full of sparrows , robins and blackbirds also get lots of other birds 

these where planted by the Builder as a condition of planning , personally I would have mixed them up a bit , your Local Council might have a list of native plants suitable for your area 

my only advise is put some compost in the soil and water for the first year

best of luck 

Gardenmaiden

My hedge is hawthorn on the right, Part conifer on the left and beech/hornbeam at the bottom, but its the hawthorn and conifer that have the birdlife.

Kayte

Thanks for all the ideas, nutcutlet the website was great for how many and varieties. I ll be checking our budget carefully! Though as usual some garden friends have already supplied some hazel , holly and rose they had growing in excess in their gardens.

nutcutlet

Look around and you'll probably find hawthorn seedlings in someone's garden

Fairygirl

Hi Kayte - most of the online hedging companies do a wildlife or native hedge mix. It's really inexpensive. They'll all have their lists ready just now for autumn/winter delivery, which gives you time to get your ground ready, and that's well worth doing. I got blackthorn last November and it's looking good already- really established. I used Hopes Grove nursery and find them very reliable - I'd used them in the past. 

FoxBat

Kayte wrote (see)

Hi we have just moved into a bungalow and had the 30+ 20 foot high conifers chopped down and roots dug out!

Wow, I hope you got them to leave the wood to store as firewood! Our neighbours over the road had all their trees thinned a couple of years ago and left me the big bits, I got about 12 wheelie bins full which lasted a good couple of years.