Daisy Payne is calling for more gardeners to plant hedgerows, and she says we should be planting up our hedges right about now. It's heartening to see a young gardening expert to be promoting the ancient art of hedge laying, which is exactly what Daisy did in a recent episode of This Morning.
She spoke about the best hedging plants to use (spoiler – there's more to hedgerows than privet), as well as discussing the best time to plant up a hedgerow. Conveniently, this happens to be November.
Why you should be planting a hedgerow now
'Planting up a hedgerow at this time of year is fantastic,' Daisy said on This Morning. The reason for this is that the soil is still warm enough for shrubs to take root before the really severe frosts hit, making it more difficult for new plants to take.
Daisy then mentioned a few great plant options for hedgerows – hawthorn, blackthorn, hazel, holly, and wild privet are all plants that can be successfully shaped into a dense hedgerow.
Hedge laying has its origins in farming. In medieval times, hedgerows were planted to mark the boundaries of land ownership, provide safe passageways for cattle, and were also used to separate woodland from farmland.
Despite their practical origins, hedgerows have immense environmental benefits, providing food and shelter for many species of wild and farm birds, small mammals, and insects. They are infinitely better for wildlife garden ideas than a fence, for example.
The benefits of hedgerows
Daisy emphasised the importance of hedgerows, saying that 'If we’re going to get to net-zero by 2050, we in the UK are going to need to plant about 40 per cent more hedgerows.'
There are lots of ways you can incorporate a hedgerow into your garden design ideas, she added: 'If you’ve got a front garden that you need a little bit of privacy in, or you’ve got a bit of space in the garden – why not think about planting up a lovely hedgerow?'
Hedgerows also make for fantastic front garden ideas, especially if you're going for the coveted cottage garden look. Hedges are resilient and easy to maintain once established – and hearing and seeing all the birds and animals that will come to your garden will be a delight.
Anna is a keen urban gardener, with David Austin roses and Japanese acers among her favourite plants. She moved into the world of interiors from academic research in the field of literature and urban space a couple of years ago. She's always been interested in how people make houses into homes, and how our concepts of what's stylish change over time.
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