Hedges and windbreaks for windy gardens

The end of 2023 and beginning of 2024 has seen some exceptionally wet and windy weather. Many gardens, especially on clay, have endured sloshy lawns and standing water, and plenty of tree and shrub debris has needed to be cleared up. It’s worth a walk around the garden to bed in any plants or trees that have worked loose, especially any non-deciduous shrubs which tend to catch the wind. At least sandy soils have provided drainage during these challenging months: the trade-off is that any lurking goodness in the soil will have been diluted by all the rain. A good mulch in early spring will be a welcome replenishment. There are plenty of options if you want to provide a windbreak in your garden – these can also act as a screening from roads or neighbouring properties. Laurels and are a good option as they are dense, fast-growing and lush. Photinia are similarly vigorous, but provide better colour in an open sunny position. Yews (taxus) are slower growing but, with regular trimming, will ultimately give a neater appearance. A mixed hedge of mainly evergreen shrubs can give you a year-round flush of colour. Upright cotoneaster, eleagnus, escallonia, pittosporum, berberis and forsythia could provide a start, with possibly a couple of climbers as the hedge becomes established. These could include jasmine, honeysuckle and rambling roses to give some summer colour and a more wild look. You could also go for the hedgerow look for your hedge. This can be a mix of hawthorn (crataegus), beech (fagus), privet (ligustrum) and hornbeam (carpinus). Even a deciduous hedge, as it grows dense and tall, will have enough body in the winter to provide excellent protection from wind damage.

David Hogg Buckland Nurseries