Wild Fruit Jelly
A very mature crab apple tree was in our garden we moved to our home and it gave us many years of fruit. Crab apple jelly was by far the tastiest t...
A very mature crab apple tree was in our garden we moved to our home and it gave us many years of fruit. Crab apple jelly was by far the tastiest t...
There are many plants that can be used for evergreen hedging, depending on your preferences and growing conditions. Some of the factors to consider when choosing a hedging plant are:
- The desired height and shape of the hedge
- The soil type and drainage
- The amount of sun or shade
- The flowering or fruiting season and colour
- The maintenance and pruning requirements
- The wildlife value and attractiveness
There are many native trees that you can plant in your garden, depending on your preferences, space and soil conditions. Some of the best native trees for gardens are:
- Silver Birch (Betula pendula): a graceful tree with white bark and yellow autumn leaves. It attracts many birds and insects and can grow in most soils .
- Holly (Ilex aquifolium): an evergreen tree with glossy leaves and red berries on female plants. It provides shelter and food for wildlife and can be used as a hedge or a specimen tree .
November is one of the busiest months in the year for planting trees and hedging. The ground is cold, soil is moist and with plenty of humidity plants and trees will need very little attention once planted. It's also the start of the dormancy period when deciduous trees and hedging plants have lost their leaves and go to sleep for the winter. As you know they don't completely switch off as the leaf buds start to develop for next springs explosion almost the moment the leaves have been shed so there is plenty to observe for the interested eye!
Cell Grown trees have changed the traditional November to March planting season. Cell Grown trees are seedlings or saplings that have been grown in greenhouses or polytunnels in specially designed seed trays like Rootrainers which encourage quick grown, good strong root establishment and are picked, packed and sold as plug plants so there is no need to wait till November as they are available year round and can be planted at any time of the year, though in the summer months if it is dry for prolonged periods any newly planted Cell Grown trees will need some watering.
Tree shelters are usually pushed off by the tree trunk when they are no longer required though if you are growing a hedge you may want to use spirals which will allow the lower branches to protrude otherwise using a solid tree shelter will result in a lollipop type hedge where there is very little at the base. If you do use solid tree shelters for a hedge we would advise removing after a year so that you get growth at the bottom of the hedge.