Hedges are the forgotten landscaping feature. Learn how to use them to create positive space for attractive, edible and practical enclosures and landscape designs that people enjoy and that are good for the environment.

(Low hedge in Cwm Llinau, Wales)

How do the words:

Lifelong Lavender Hedge sound to your ears?

Earlier today I was studying Lavender, you know that most beautiful and charming of herbs. I came across the above phrase and instantly knew “that is what I want.” The phrase reverberated inside of me like a bell and instantly catapulted my visions toward imagining lavender hedges in various parts of our homestead that I would only have to plant once.

When I think of lavender, of course it is easy to envision the straight rows we’re familiar with of the unspeakably beautiful shots from France and the Mediterranean.

(Brian Jannsen Photography)

That is more of a production style and frankly, I don’t have space or desire to do that with lavender on my land. I already have Wine Grapes, Blackberries, Elderberries, Garlic, and soon to be Blueberries planted in that style. I don’t see lavender fitting in very well here like that. But a hedge – yes, I am sold!

The Cambridge Dictionary defines “Hedge” as

a line of bushes or small trees planted close together, esp. along the edge of a yard or road.

By this definition, we see the meaning of the word edge in hedge. Hedges necessarily create edges which by definition imply boundaries.

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Boundaries are the key to successful niche creation in landscaping. Freeform open spaces don’t make people feel comfortable and they aren’t as attractive to the eye.

In the Pattern Language, Christopher Alexander describes the necessity to create spaces that have boundaries. They give comfort to the human psyche, offering places of rest and relaxation. He divides outdoor spaces into those with negative and positive space creation. The positive space does not spill out indefinitely around corners. A hedge or outer boundary gives a sense of enclosure.

Have you ever walked through a garden and felt held by the space? Boundaries help create this feeling.

Think of the secret garden…

What comes to mind? An enclosure, right?

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Enclosures help create the space and add a sense of mystery and allure.

In traditional Ireland and England, hedges were an art form

Every year farmers would take a few days out to maintain their hundreds of metres of hedge, re-weaving or pruning the new growth, and each area had its own style and tricks. Ireland has hedge-laying associations, contests, awards and fans, and farmers take pride in maintaining the same hedges that have existed for decades or centuries.

Typically the hedge-layer takes each upward-pointing sapling, holds it at whatever height he wants the hedge to be, and cuts diagonally downward through the wood – but only partway. He then lays everything above the cut down horizontally, often weaving it through the other saplings and beating the woven branches down with a club until they were densely matted. A bit of bark and wood still connects the top and bottom of the tree, so the top remains alive and growing even as it lies flat amid many other branches. In this way, the weave itself gets thicker over time, until it is an impenetrable barrier of living wood.

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Now that we’ve established the value of hedges, let’s talk about a few radical hedge ideas.

They were traditionally:

Lines of densely-planted trees – fast-growing breeds like willow, elder, hazel, birch, chestnut, pine, hawthorn, blackthorn and rowan. Their branches intertwine so thickly that they weave like threads in rope – I recently tried to cut a tree down here recently and even when the base was cut through, the trunk continued to hang in the air, supported by the branches around it. Blackberry brambles and ivy help fill the spaces above, and useful weeds below.

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As mentioned previously, hedges can be beautiful, useful and pleasant smelling as in the case of lavender.

They can also go a step further and be edible.

(Blueberries can be used as a hedge.)

We are currently in the process of planting over 50 elderberries on the edge of the driveway acting as a hedge. We can coppice these each year (cut them down to the ground) and get flowers and berries off of first year growth or we can let them grow and prune and shape them how we would like. We could let them fill out until they create a living hedge that is equally attractive, edible, useful and beneficial for birds and other wildlife. You can also keep things out if you want to use a thorny rose or bramble like blackberries.

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The hedge in this way becomes a positive space creator as well as a boon to the homestead.

You can also use hazels, which is a tradition that goes back a long ways in Europe. They're great for coppicing and getting valuable fats & proteins!

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Living Hedge

The phrase Living Hedge implies something more akin to a fence or wall. In the olden days in our region, people used to plant Osage Oranges also known as Hedge Apples and let them grow thickly together in order to act as a living fence. They actually kept their cows this way!

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Isn’t that cool? When/if the tree died the fence would go on living as Osage Orange is one of the toughest, rot resistant and longest lasting woods available.

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The possibilities are virtually endless when one is considering what to make a hedge with. Hedges can also serve to retain moisture in a landscape acting to stop run-off. They can also act as a habitat and food source for small mammals and birds.

I hope this article has enlivened your sensibilities when thinking about landscape planning and the oft forgotten art of using hedges to create enclosures that are pleasant to be in. Stay tuned for the Lifelong Lavender Hedge coming soon to Mountain Jewel.