RHS Hampton Court Garden Festival 2021 25 August 2022/by Marketing

Return to RHS Flower Shows

RHS Flower Shows made a welcome return to the schedule in July 2021. First on the agenda was The Hampton Court Garden Festival which is the world’s largest flower show, set in the stunning grounds of the Historic Royal Palace in Richmond upon Thames.

Every year, talented garden designers choose our Instant Hedge as an integral part of their concept, forming an important green backdrop or as part of the structure within the design itself. At this year’s RHS Hampton Court Show, we provided quality products for two designers.

Message in a Bottle

Tracy Foster designed this Global Impact Garden for Canal & River Trust.

This conceptual garden represented a discarded bottle floating towards the shore. It’s not a depressing piece of pollution, rather, it has a bright and appealing garden growing inside it. Its message was simple; we can all take action to help prevent plastic pollution, in our own gardens, urban green spaces and around our canals and rivers. Surrounding the bottle was a sea of graceful flax plants that represent plants which are natural alternatives to plastic. We supplied individual shrubs as part of the bottle garden.

The Communication Garden

Amelia Bouquet’s Lifestyle Garden, in support of Mental Health UK, was a living, growing symbolic refuge.

The Communication Garden is a place to meet, talk, listen and to highlight the importance of face-to-face communication for our mental wellbeing. The rustic woodland and native trees provide a protective canopy. Topiary balls symbolise ordered, rigid thoughts. Other shrubs represent a mindset that is less inhibited and more relaxed and is reinforced with bursts of colour.

Practical Instant Native Mix Hedge was used as a backdrop to Amelia’s garden.

Both Garden Designers visited us to see the hedge growing in our nursery in Iver, Bucks and to select the exact specimen and height they want for their individual designs.

Talk to our Horticultural team about how Practical Instant Hedge™ could be right for your own show garden. Simply email us on hedge@pracbrown.co.uk

Instant Hedge 6 January 2022/by Technique Web

We Are The Instant Hedge Specialists

Practicality Brown have specialised in Instant Hedge for over 20 years, providing immediate impact and maturity to many private gardens and landscaping projects.

Our Instant Hedges are pre grown and sold by the linear metre, rather than as individual plants. These mature hedges are available to plant all year round and are supplied between 0.8m and 1.8/2m high. Using our experience we have now developed our own range of Instant Hedge grown in hedge bags by us in Iver, Bucks.

You are most welcome to visit to view our stock and select your own hedge, just contact our sales team to make an appointment and one of our experts will show you around the nursery.

Portuguese Laurel Practical Instant Hedge

Please see our Practical Instant Hedge™ page for details of this high end, easy to plant, Instant Hedge.

To buy an Instant Hedge please either fill out an enquiry form or call us on 01753 652022 to discuss your requirements. Our sales team will then be able to provide a bespoke quotation based on the best instant hedge options for your specific garden project. We also have hedges taller than 2m high available – click on the following link for details – screening trees and high hedge

If you are unsure what an instant hedge is – please click on the link for more information.

Instant Hedge Varieties

We have over fifteen thousand metres of instant hedge in production, both evergreen and deciduous, the species and heights available are listed below. The availability can change on a weekly basis and therefore we welcome specific enquiries, based on the approximate linear metres required and the time of planting.

Evergreen Instant Hedging

Broadleaf (Griselinia littoralis)
90 to 100cm, 1.5 to 1.8m and 1.8m high

Yew (Taxus baccata)
80 to 100cm, 1.3m, 1.5m and 1.8 to 2m high

Laurel (Prunus laurocerasus ‘Rotundifolia’)
1 to 1.2m, 1.3 to 1.5m, 1.5 to 1.8m and 1.8 to 2m high

White Cedar (Thuja occidentalis ‘Brabant’)

1.6 to 1.8m and 1.8 to 2m high

Portuguese Laurel (Prunus lusitanica ‘Angustifolia’)
1.2 to 1.5m, 1.5 to 1.8m and 1.8 to 2m high

Oleaster (Elaeagnus ebbingei ‘Compacta’)
1.3 to 1.5m high

Photinia fraseri ‘Red Robin’
1.2 to 1.4m, 1.6 to 1.8m and 1.8m high

English Holly (Ilex aquifolium)
1.3 to 1.5m and 1.5 to 1.8m high

Blue Holly (Ilex meserveae)
1.4m to 1.6m high

Privet (Ligustrum ovalifolium) semi-evergreen
1.2 to 1.5m and 1.8 to 2m high

Burkwood osmanthus (Osmanthus burkwoodii)
80cm to 100cm high

Deciduous Instant Hedging

Native Mix (various mixes of native plants)
1 to 1.2m, 1.2 to 1.5m, 1.5/1.8m and 1.8 to 2m high

Green Beech (Fagus sylvatica)
1 to 1.2m, 1.2 to 1.4m and 1.5 to 1.8m high

Purple Beech (Fagus sylvatica ‘Atropunicea’)
1 to 1.2m and 1.5 to 1.8m high

Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna)
1 to 1.2m and 1.5m high

Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus)
1.4 to 1.6m and 1.8m high

Instant Hedge Benefits

Hedges are cost effective, compared to a brick wall and form an attractive boundary more quickly than many gardeners imagine.

They can create a strong framework for the garden, so that it looks good in midwinter and is adept at providing an attractive background to carry the beautiful floral decoration of spring and summer. As well as providing structure to the garden, they can be perfect for wildlife, and particularly nesting birds.

Planting a mature, instant hedge has the following benefits:

We have taken the time to grow the hedges, so you don’t have to!
Shelter: reducing wind strength better than a solid barrier
Filter: absorbing dust and noise
Privacy: as an effective visual screen, particularly evergreen hedging
Security: a prickly hedge is a great intruder deterrent
Beauty and interest from seasonal changes, particularly deciduous hedging
Background texture and colour complement other plants
Wildlife: food and shelter for a wide variety of native insects, birds and mammals
Weather-resistance: much better than manmade fences or brick walls
Economy long term compared with fencing and brick work
Long-lived: hedges can last hundreds of years
Can be planted to shape, such as a curve
Easy to maintain; see our notes on maintaining your instant hedge.

Hedge Selecting Guide

We have created a table to help select the most suitable instant hedge for your project, click here.

Delivery and Installation

Our service options include delivery and installation or delivery only; for hedges direct to your garden, you need to look no further.

Mature Ready Grown Hedges

Practicality Brown have a number of hedging options available to help take the time out of creating a mature, instant look for any garden hedge project – whether its evergreen instant hedging for privacy screening or the seasonal interest of a mature deciduous instant hedging.

As well as our own Practical Instant Hedge™ we also supply top quality Hedging Elements and other quality hedging solutions.

Hedging Plants

We can also supply beautiful individual hedging plants and elements for different applications and extreme heights of up to 6 metres; see our Projects page or News Blog for examples of our work.

Testimonials

Hedging and Trees

“A big thank you to your team. Everyone was extremely professional, personable and responsive. Steve was excellent in making suggestions and coming up with a planting plan. Conrad was equally consultative during the planting process when we re-ordered the shrubs for the back garden once we had them on site and worked with us on positioning the front hedge. Everything looks great and we couldn’t be happier with the screening set up in the back garden – most importantly, our neighbour loves it!! As Steve knows, we have another project on the go at the moment – we will be in touch next year once we start the landscaping process and need to address another screening challenge.” SB

Happy Customer

“Thanks for a job beautifully done! The Photinia hedgerow looks brilliant; as if it had been there ten years already. The team were great; very efficient and professional, carrying out their work with care and precision. Even the lorry and the equipment looked classy! I arrived at the house at 8:00am to the usual gap at the front and by lunchtime the hedge was in place being irrigated and the grounds tidied over. So glad I went with Practicality Brown and if anyone wants a recommendation, I’ll give you my 10 out of 10 vote. Thanks again to all who worked on this project.” HS

Photinia Hedge

“Just wanted to say how thrilled we are with the beech hedge you installed at the beginning of the month. We were very impressed with all the team from start to finish, they were friendly, extremely efficient and very tidy. It really sets the house off and has been much complimented on by friends and neighbours. In fact one of them has already asked for your number. Please pass on our thanks to all those involved.” D&S M

Beech Hedge

“We were very pleased with the Yew hedge – it has achieved exactly the effect that we wanted… “ I H – Whitchurch.

Yew Hedge

“The Practicality Brown team were very helpful and co-operative. I chose the hedges myself and was delighted with the service”. Dr. R P

Laurel and Yew Hedge to Cheam

“I expected you to be good and you were, well done”. JR, Hertfordshire.

Tree and Hedge planting in Herts

“Very pleased with the product, good informative response from site workforce. The Yew hedge for Sytch Lane Cemetery (Wombourne), lived up to our expectations”. PD.

South Staffordshire Council

“I’m not really sure where I heard of Practicality Brown, but I am very pleased with the quality of the hedge supplied…” JC.

Hornbeam Hedge to Local Authority Park

“The hedge was recommended by Pathfinder Gardening. The quality of the Beech hedging supplied was excellent”. AM.

Green Beech to Oxford

“The impact of a 30 metre long, 6 feet high instant laurel hedge appearing overnight caused some very amusing stares from drivers on the school run! A fantastic end result, providing privacy and noise reduction”. CC.

Laural Hedge

“Many thanks for the great service and quality of the yew hedging. I will be in touch regarding future work soon”. R.

Yew Hedging

Contact Us

Please use the enquiry form with details of the hedges that you are interested in and we will provide you with a bespoke quotation.

Can I buy a pre grown hedge

You can buy a hedge or an instant hedge from Practicality Brown. We offer different products that can be used as a hedge in your garden; a ready grown instant hedge and individual hedging plants.

Instant hedging is pre-grown as a mature, readymade hedge, which creates an immediate impact. This is sold by the linear metre and is available between 0.8m to 2m high.

Individual hedging plants are particularly useful if a high hedge is required over the standard 2m high instant hedge. They are available in heights from 60cm up to 6m

Both hedging products are available in a variety of popular species, both evergreen and deciduous.

What is an instant hedge?

An instant hedge is pre-grown as a mature hedgerow, creating an immediate, impressive impact; these top quality hedging options are sold by the linear metre, rather than as individual plants.

Benefits of planting an instant hedge:

Immediate, impressive impact
Mature plants that have already knitted together
Suitable for planting all year round
Creates show garden quality and effect

We have used our expertise, care and time to create a hedge ready to plant and enjoy. Our mature hedges are available to plant all year round and are supplied between 0.8m and 1.8 to 2m high, more details here

How long before my hedge looks mature?

Our hedges are mature from the moment of planting, we have the time to grow them, so you don’t have to.

Testimonial

“Thanks for a job beautifully done! The Photinia hedge looks brilliant; as if it had been there ten years already. I arrived at the house at 8:00am to the usual gap at the front and by lunchtime the hedge was in place…… So glad I went with Practicality Brown and if anyone wants a recommendation, I’ll give you my 10 out of 10 vote. Thanks again to all who worked on this project.” HS

Hedging for Kew Gardens 17 February 2020/by Marketing

Supplying Royal Botanic Gardens Kew

Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, in West London, required a mature hedging solution along the perimeter of their planned Children’s Garden. The hedging was needed for immediate impact, to create the boundary of the garden, with the intention of leaving only one main entrance and exit to the garden.

The Children’s Garden is a major new feature for Kew and aims to inspire children to love and care for plants, gardens and open-air play. The completed garden is over an hectare in area and includes play structures and extensive planting among the existing trees; it is the first significant development within the Kew Gardens estate for over a decade.

Native Mix Instant Hedge

We won a competitive tender to supply 190 metres Green Beech and 200 metres of Mixed Native instant hedge. We grew our Practical Instant Hedges™ for Royal Botanic Gardens, here at out nursery in Iver. The Native Mix was made up in equal quantities of

Dogwood – Cornus sanguinea
Field Maple – Acer campestre
Hawthorn – Crataegus monogyna
Hazel – Corylus avellana
Hornbeam – Carpinus betulus

Mature Instant Hedge

As with all our dense, pre-planted and ready grown Practical Instant Hedges™, this was produced in 1m long bags of continuous root strips for easy, stress-free planting all year round. In addition to the original tender, we also supplied Quercus Ilex Instant Hedge and as well as additional Beech and Native Mix.

The Children’s’ Garden has proven really successful for Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew with over 25,000 positive reviews. Our 400 metre Practical Instant Hedges™ contribute to the overall ambience, providing a safe and secure environment for the children to play and explore nature.

Award-Winning

This project has been awarded the British Association of Landscape Industries’ (BALI) prestigious Grand Award at the 43rd BALI National Landscape Awards 2019. Planted and managed by specialist landscaping company, Ground Control, this scheme also won the Community and Schools Development category.

Congratulations to Royal Botanical Gardens, Kew and everyone involved; we are proud to associated with The Children’s’ Garden.

RHS Tatton Park 2019 31 July 2019/by Marketing

RHS Tatton Park 2019

RHS gives young garden designers the chance to kick start their careers and gain invaluable exposure at a prestigious RHS Show with its Young Designer Competition, now in its 11th year. This year, four young designers created gardens at the RHS Tatton Park Flower Show.

Practicality Brown like to support young designers, see project post on Hampton Court for the gardens we were involved with this year. At Tatton Park, we supplied our elegant Portuguese Laurel Practical Instant Hedge for a garden in the Young Designers category. Grown here at our nursery in Iver, we have taken great care with these instant hedging solutions to supply a premium quality product, as befits a Show Garden.

The Phytosanctuary Garden

Gold medal winner and Young Designer of the Year 2019

This beautiful garden was designed by Kristian Reay and is planted with a Mediterranean theme to raise awareness of Xylella fastidiosa disease that poses a threat to many of our much-loved plants.

At first glance, this garden is a beautiful and desirable space awash with ornamental grasses and a palette of fragrant perennials evocative of the Mediterranean. But look beyond its fragile beauty and a darker message is revealed – the growing threat of the deadly plant disease.

At the centre of the garden is a graceful Olea europaea, the olive tree that has been devastated by the disease throughout southern Europe.

Similarly, the Lavandula (lavender), and Prunus lusitanica hedge are also ‘at-risk’ species that have been severely affected by Xylella. We supplied the Practical Portuguese Laurel Instant Hedge, which in integral to this statement garden.

The art designed on the back wall depicts Xylella. The circle represents xylem, while Xylella can be seen inside. It shows how Xylella multiplies and restricts water flow within the xylem, threatening the plant.

Kristian was announced as the winner of the Young Designer of the year 2019 at the RHS Flower Show Tatton Park and will also take home an RHS Gold medal for his thoughtful design. Speaking ahead of the competition, Kristian said: “As a Young Designer I’m deeply concerned about the risk from plant diseases like Xylella to our gardens and landscapes, so I think this is a really important topic to discuss at the show.

“I’ve included at-risk garden favourites like lavender in the planting to highlight the impact the disease could have if these plants were to vanish.”

The role of gardeners and the scientific community in responding to the threat posed by Xylella is explored in a display describing the BRIGIT project and the Defra and Animal and Plant Health Agency’s Don’t Risk It! campaign.

Congratulations to Kristian, a Gold medal winner and now Best Young Designer!

Links

RHS Young Designer of the Year

The Phytosanctuary Garden

Practical Instant Hedge

Kristian Reay

BBC coverage

Elaeagnus Instant Hedge 20 March 2018/by Marketing

Elaeagnus Instant Hedge

Elaeagnus Instant Hedge is robust with tough silvery grey leaves that are frost, wind and salt resistant.

Elaeagnus ebbingei ‘Compacta’ makes a wonderful fast growing evergreen instant hedge.

Also known as Oleaster, this Instant Hedge has the benefit of fragrant flowers in the autumn and orange fruits in the spring.

Elaeagnus ebbingei is excellent for creating a dense evergreen screen anywhere but has particular value in coastal areas.

This Practical Instant Hedge™ is currently available at 1.3 to 1.5m high.

Elaeagnus Instant Hedge

Elaeagnus growing in the nursery at Iver, Bucks.

Click here to contact us if you would like a quote for this instant hedge.

aka eleagnus elagnus elaegnus

Species

Latin

Foliage

Pruning

Annual growth

Aspect

Soil acceptance

pH

Leaves

Oleaster

Elaeagnus ebbingei ‘Compacta’

Evergreen

Once in July or August

Fast 40-60cm

All

Very good coastal hedge

All well drained

Acidic to slightly alkaline

Silvery-green evergreen foliage

Holm Oak Instant Hedge 6 December 2017/by Marketing

Holm Oak Instant Hedge

Holm Oak (Quercus ilex) takes its name from Holm, an ancient name for Holly due to the shape of its leaves. A Holm Oak Instant Hedge has glossy, dark green leaves which are pale whitish-grey underneath; yellow catkins grow in spring/early summer and young acorns are green when emerging in spring, turning dark red-brown before falling.

Holm Oak or Evergreen Oak makes a robust and sturdy hedge barrier; it is hardy, thriving in all well-drained soils. It is suitable for coastal areas, tolerates shade and copes well with air pollution.

This Instant Hedging is available as Practical Instant Hedge at 1.6/1.8m high.

Holm Oak has a medium growth rate (20 – 30 cm/year) and responds well to trimming.

Holm Oak Instant Hedge

Holm Oak Practical Instant Hedge at the nursery in Iver, Bucks.

Click here to contact us if you would like a quote for this instant hedge.

Species	Latin	Foliage	Pruning	Annual growth	Aspect	Soil acceptance	pH	Leaves
Holm Oak	Quercus ilex	Evergreen	Once in August	Medium 20-30cm	Sun to shade	All well drained	Acidic to alkaline	Glossy, dark green, pale underneath; spiny when young

Griselinia Instant Hedge 15 August 2017/by Marketing

Griselinia Instant Hedge

Griselinia littoralis is a wonderful evergreen instant hedge, also known as Broadleaf or New Zealand Broadleaf, it has has leathery leaves which are an attractive light apple-green with inconspicuous yellow-green flowers in the spring followed by purple fruits on female plants in the Autumn.

This hedging plant is excellent for coastal locations as it is particularly tolerant of salt laden winds – indeed the ‘littoralis’ translates as ‘growing by the sea’.

Broadleaf instant hedging prefers acidic to slightly alkaline soil in either full sun or part shade. It is sensitive to a heavy frost so should be planted in a sheltered place although any damaged shoots can be pruned out and will regrow. It is therefore typically used as a hedge or evergreen screen in southern coastal locations but also does well in warmer inland areas.

Griselinia is fast growing (30 – 40 cm/year) and should be trimmed at least once a year, in July or August.

Currently available at 90/100cm, 1.5/1.8m and 1.8m high as trough grown Practical Instant Hedge™.

Griselinia littoralis Practical Instant Hedge

Griselinia Practical Instant Hedge™ at the nursery in Iver

Click here to contact us if you would like a quote for this instant hedge.

griselina

Species	Latin	Foliage	Pruning	Annual growth	Aspect	Soil acceptance	pH	Leaves
Broadleaf	Griselinia littoralis	Evergreen	Once in July or August	Fast 30-40cm	Sun to partial shade	All well drained	Acidic to slightly alkaline	Apple-green leathery leaves

Some common misspellings of this Broadleaf hedging include greselinea, gresilinea, griselinea, grisilinea, grisilina

Laurel Instant Hedge 19 January 2016/by KeyInsite

Cherry Laurel Instant Hedge

Cherry Laurel (Prunus laurocerasus ‘Rotundifolia’) is an evergreen shrub that makes a bright, dense hedge. Also known as Common or English Laurel, it’s shiny lime green leaves are thick and leathery, providing perfect evergreen screening. A Cherry Laurel Instant Hedge is also a good choice if you are looking to reduce noise levels, for example, from a busy road.

The ideal situation for this evergreen hedging is in nutritious soil that is not too heavy and is happy in sun or shade. Prunus laurocerasus will thrive in most soils, including clay, but it dislikes (shallow) chalk when Portuguese Laurel would be perfect.

A Laurel hedge is fast growing (30 – 40 cm/year) and should be trimmed at least once a year, in July or August.

We have this available at 1/1.2m, 1.3/1.5m, 1.5/1.8m and 1.8/2m high as a Practical Instant Hedge™.

Cherry Laurel Instant Hedge

1.6/1.8m high Practical Instant Common Laurel Hedge growing at our nursery in Iver, Bucks.

Click here to contact us if you would like a quote for this instant hedge.

Species	Latin	Foliage	Pruning	Annual growth	Aspect	Soil acceptance	pH	Leaves
Cherry Laurel	Prunus laurocerasus	Evergreen	Once in July or August	Fast30-40cm	Sun to shade	All except shallow chalk	Neutral to slightly acidic	Large shiny green. Thick and leathery

Yew Instant Hedge 11 January 2016/by KeyInsite

Yew Instant Hedge

Yew Instant Hedge is a very popular choice, a timeless classic if you like. At home in any garden style from the traditional to the more contemporary, a Yew hedge is a perfect choice for dense, mature evergreen hedging.

The plant itself, Latin: Taxus baccata, is a long lived native evergreen conifer that makes an excellent formal hedge when trimmed into classical lines and is also perfect for privacy screening. Sometimes referred to as English Yew, the leaves are shiny dark green needles that are pale green underneath.

This evergreen Instant Hedge should be planted a sunny or partially shaded position but will tolerate full shade. Taxus baccata is happy in both chalk and clay and will thrive in all but the most acidic of soils. However Yew does not like particularly wet sites so these should be avoided or suitable drainage should be installed prior to planting.

Although slow growing (5 – 20 cm/year) a Yew hedge should be trimmed once a year, preferably in August.

This Instant Hedging is available as a Practical Instant Hedge™ at 80 – 100cm high, 1.3m, 1.5m and 1.8/2m high.

Yew Instant Hedge growing at the nursery

Practical Instant Yew Hedge is supplied in easy to plant hedge bags

Click here to contact us if you would like a quote for this instant hedge.

Species	Latin	Foliage	Pruning	Annual growth	Aspect	Soil acceptance	pH	Leaves
Yew	Taxus baccata	Evergreen	Once in August	Slow5-20cm	Sun to shade	All except peat	Slightly acidic to alkaline	Shiny dark green needles that are pale green underneath

White Cedar Instant Hedge 11 January 2016/by KeyInsite

Thuja occidentalis Instant Hedge

White Cedar (Thuja occidentalis ‘Brabant’) produces a dense, evergreen hedge. The leaves are an attractive light green that can take on a subtle bronze colour in the winter months.

A popular alternative to Leylandii hedging, as it is slower growing but still provides a dense, evergreen, conifer hedge. In addition, Thuja can be hard pruned, and the old wood will regenerate, whereas Leylandii will go brown and die off.

This mature evergreen screen grows well in most conditions but prefers moist, nutrient-full soil.

A White Cedar Hedge is relatively slow growing (20 – 30 cm/year) and will need pruning once a year, preferably in late Summer.

This hedge is currently available at 1.6/1.8m and 1.8m high as Practical Instant Hedge™

White Cedar Instant Hedge

Click here to contact us if you would like a quote for this instant hedge.

White Cedar Instant Hedge growing at the nursery in Iver

Species	Latin	Foliage	Pruning	Annual growth	Aspect	Soil acceptance	pH	Leaves
White Cedar	Thuja occidentalis	Evergreen	Late Summer	Slow20-30cm	Sun to shade	Most soil types	Acidic to alkaline	Scaly light green

RHS Hampton Court Garden Festival 2021 25 August 2022/by Marketing

Return to RHS Flower Shows

RHS Flower Shows made a welcome return to the schedule in July 2021. First on the agenda was The Hampton Court Garden Festival which is the world’s largest flower show, set in the stunning grounds of the Historic Royal Palace in Richmond upon Thames.

Every year, talented garden designers choose our Instant Hedge as an integral part of their concept, forming an important green backdrop or as part of the structure within the design itself. At this year’s RHS Hampton Court Show, we provided quality products for two designers.

Message in a Bottle

Tracy Foster designed this Global Impact Garden for Canal & River Trust.

This conceptual garden represented a discarded bottle floating towards the shore. It’s not a depressing piece of pollution, rather, it has a bright and appealing garden growing inside it. Its message was simple; we can all take action to help prevent plastic pollution, in our own gardens, urban green spaces and around our canals and rivers. Surrounding the bottle was a sea of graceful flax plants that represent plants which are natural alternatives to plastic. We supplied individual shrubs as part of the bottle garden.

The Communication Garden

Amelia Bouquet’s Lifestyle Garden, in support of Mental Health UK, was a living, growing symbolic refuge.

The Communication Garden is a place to meet, talk, listen and to highlight the importance of face-to-face communication for our mental wellbeing. The rustic woodland and native trees provide a protective canopy. Topiary balls symbolise ordered, rigid thoughts. Other shrubs represent a mindset that is less inhibited and more relaxed and is reinforced with bursts of colour.

Practical Instant Native Mix Hedge was used as a backdrop to Amelia’s garden.

Both Garden Designers visited us to see the hedge growing in our nursery in Iver, Bucks and to select the exact specimen and height they want for their individual designs.

Talk to our Horticultural team about how Practical Instant Hedge™ could be right for your own show garden. Simply email us on hedge@pracbrown.co.uk

Instant Hedge 6 January 2022/by Technique Web

We Are The Instant Hedge Specialists

Practicality Brown have specialised in Instant Hedge for over 20 years, providing immediate impact and maturity to many private gardens and landscaping projects.

Our Instant Hedges are pre grown and sold by the linear metre, rather than as individual plants. These mature hedges are available to plant all year round and are supplied between 0.8m and 1.8/2m high. Using our experience we have now developed our own range of Instant Hedge grown in hedge bags by us in Iver, Bucks.

You are most welcome to visit to view our stock and select your own hedge, just contact our sales team to make an appointment and one of our experts will show you around the nursery.

Portuguese Laurel Practical Instant Hedge

Please see our Practical Instant Hedge™ page for details of this high end, easy to plant, Instant Hedge.

To buy an Instant Hedge please either fill out an enquiry form or call us on 01753 652022 to discuss your requirements. Our sales team will then be able to provide a bespoke quotation based on the best instant hedge options for your specific garden project. We also have hedges taller than 2m high available – click on the following link for details – screening trees and high hedge

If you are unsure what an instant hedge is – please click on the link for more information.

Instant Hedge Varieties

We have over fifteen thousand metres of instant hedge in production, both evergreen and deciduous, the species and heights available are listed below. The availability can change on a weekly basis and therefore we welcome specific enquiries, based on the approximate linear metres required and the time of planting.

Evergreen Instant Hedging

Broadleaf (Griselinia littoralis)
90 to 100cm, 1.5 to 1.8m and 1.8m high

Yew (Taxus baccata)
80 to 100cm, 1.3m, 1.5m and 1.8 to 2m high

Laurel (Prunus laurocerasus ‘Rotundifolia’)
1 to 1.2m, 1.3 to 1.5m, 1.5 to 1.8m and 1.8 to 2m high

White Cedar (Thuja occidentalis ‘Brabant’)

1.6 to 1.8m and 1.8 to 2m high

Portuguese Laurel (Prunus lusitanica ‘Angustifolia’)
1.2 to 1.5m, 1.5 to 1.8m and 1.8 to 2m high

Oleaster (Elaeagnus ebbingei ‘Compacta’)
1.3 to 1.5m high

Photinia fraseri ‘Red Robin’
1.2 to 1.4m, 1.6 to 1.8m and 1.8m high

English Holly (Ilex aquifolium)
1.3 to 1.5m and 1.5 to 1.8m high

Blue Holly (Ilex meserveae)
1.4m to 1.6m high

Privet (Ligustrum ovalifolium) semi-evergreen
1.2 to 1.5m and 1.8 to 2m high

Burkwood osmanthus (Osmanthus burkwoodii)
80cm to 100cm high

Deciduous Instant Hedging

Native Mix (various mixes of native plants)
1 to 1.2m, 1.2 to 1.5m, 1.5/1.8m and 1.8 to 2m high

Green Beech (Fagus sylvatica)
1 to 1.2m, 1.2 to 1.4m and 1.5 to 1.8m high

Purple Beech (Fagus sylvatica ‘Atropunicea’)
1 to 1.2m and 1.5 to 1.8m high

Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna)
1 to 1.2m and 1.5m high

Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus)
1.4 to 1.6m and 1.8m high

Instant Hedge Benefits

Hedges are cost effective, compared to a brick wall and form an attractive boundary more quickly than many gardeners imagine.

They can create a strong framework for the garden, so that it looks good in midwinter and is adept at providing an attractive background to carry the beautiful floral decoration of spring and summer. As well as providing structure to the garden, they can be perfect for wildlife, and particularly nesting birds.

Planting a mature, instant hedge has the following benefits:

We have taken the time to grow the hedges, so you don’t have to!
Shelter: reducing wind strength better than a solid barrier
Filter: absorbing dust and noise
Privacy: as an effective visual screen, particularly evergreen hedging
Security: a prickly hedge is a great intruder deterrent
Beauty and interest from seasonal changes, particularly deciduous hedging
Background texture and colour complement other plants
Wildlife: food and shelter for a wide variety of native insects, birds and mammals
Weather-resistance: much better than manmade fences or brick walls
Economy long term compared with fencing and brick work
Long-lived: hedges can last hundreds of years
Can be planted to shape, such as a curve
Easy to maintain; see our notes on maintaining your instant hedge.

Hedge Selecting Guide

We have created a table to help select the most suitable instant hedge for your project, click here.

Delivery and Installation

Our service options include delivery and installation or delivery only; for hedges direct to your garden, you need to look no further.

Mature Ready Grown Hedges

Practicality Brown have a number of hedging options available to help take the time out of creating a mature, instant look for any garden hedge project – whether its evergreen instant hedging for privacy screening or the seasonal interest of a mature deciduous instant hedging.

As well as our own Practical Instant Hedge™ we also supply top quality Hedging Elements and other quality hedging solutions.

Hedging Plants

We can also supply beautiful individual hedging plants and elements for different applications and extreme heights of up to 6 metres; see our Projects page or News Blog for examples of our work.

Testimonials

Hedging and Trees

“A big thank you to your team. Everyone was extremely professional, personable and responsive. Steve was excellent in making suggestions and coming up with a planting plan. Conrad was equally consultative during the planting process when we re-ordered the shrubs for the back garden once we had them on site and worked with us on positioning the front hedge. Everything looks great and we couldn’t be happier with the screening set up in the back garden – most importantly, our neighbour loves it!! As Steve knows, we have another project on the go at the moment – we will be in touch next year once we start the landscaping process and need to address another screening challenge.” SB

Happy Customer

“Thanks for a job beautifully done! The Photinia hedgerow looks brilliant; as if it had been there ten years already. The team were great; very efficient and professional, carrying out their work with care and precision. Even the lorry and the equipment looked classy! I arrived at the house at 8:00am to the usual gap at the front and by lunchtime the hedge was in place being irrigated and the grounds tidied over. So glad I went with Practicality Brown and if anyone wants a recommendation, I’ll give you my 10 out of 10 vote. Thanks again to all who worked on this project.” HS

Photinia Hedge

“Just wanted to say how thrilled we are with the beech hedge you installed at the beginning of the month. We were very impressed with all the team from start to finish, they were friendly, extremely efficient and very tidy. It really sets the house off and has been much complimented on by friends and neighbours. In fact one of them has already asked for your number. Please pass on our thanks to all those involved.” D&S M

Beech Hedge

“We were very pleased with the Yew hedge – it has achieved exactly the effect that we wanted… “ I H – Whitchurch.

Yew Hedge

“The Practicality Brown team were very helpful and co-operative. I chose the hedges myself and was delighted with the service”. Dr. R P

Laurel and Yew Hedge to Cheam

“I expected you to be good and you were, well done”. JR, Hertfordshire.

Tree and Hedge planting in Herts

“Very pleased with the product, good informative response from site workforce. The Yew hedge for Sytch Lane Cemetery (Wombourne), lived up to our expectations”. PD.

South Staffordshire Council

“I’m not really sure where I heard of Practicality Brown, but I am very pleased with the quality of the hedge supplied…” JC.

Hornbeam Hedge to Local Authority Park

“The hedge was recommended by Pathfinder Gardening. The quality of the Beech hedging supplied was excellent”. AM.

Green Beech to Oxford

“The impact of a 30 metre long, 6 feet high instant laurel hedge appearing overnight caused some very amusing stares from drivers on the school run! A fantastic end result, providing privacy and noise reduction”. CC.

Laural Hedge

“Many thanks for the great service and quality of the yew hedging. I will be in touch regarding future work soon”. R.

Yew Hedging

Contact Us

Please use the enquiry form with details of the hedges that you are interested in and we will provide you with a bespoke quotation.

Can I buy a pre grown hedge

You can buy a hedge or an instant hedge from Practicality Brown. We offer different products that can be used as a hedge in your garden; a ready grown instant hedge and individual hedging plants.

Instant hedging is pre-grown as a mature, readymade hedge, which creates an immediate impact. This is sold by the linear metre and is available between 0.8m to 2m high.

Individual hedging plants are particularly useful if a high hedge is required over the standard 2m high instant hedge. They are available in heights from 60cm up to 6m

Both hedging products are available in a variety of popular species, both evergreen and deciduous.

What is an instant hedge?

An instant hedge is pre-grown as a mature hedgerow, creating an immediate, impressive impact; these top quality hedging options are sold by the linear metre, rather than as individual plants.

Benefits of planting an instant hedge:

Immediate, impressive impact
Mature plants that have already knitted together
Suitable for planting all year round
Creates show garden quality and effect

We have used our expertise, care and time to create a hedge ready to plant and enjoy. Our mature hedges are available to plant all year round and are supplied between 0.8m and 1.8 to 2m high, more details here

How long before my hedge looks mature?

Our hedges are mature from the moment of planting, we have the time to grow them, so you don’t have to.

Testimonial

“Thanks for a job beautifully done! The Photinia hedge looks brilliant; as if it had been there ten years already. I arrived at the house at 8:00am to the usual gap at the front and by lunchtime the hedge was in place…… So glad I went with Practicality Brown and if anyone wants a recommendation, I’ll give you my 10 out of 10 vote. Thanks again to all who worked on this project.” HS

Hedging for Kew Gardens 17 February 2020/by Marketing

Supplying Royal Botanic Gardens Kew

Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, in West London, required a mature hedging solution along the perimeter of their planned Children’s Garden. The hedging was needed for immediate impact, to create the boundary of the garden, with the intention of leaving only one main entrance and exit to the garden.

The Children’s Garden is a major new feature for Kew and aims to inspire children to love and care for plants, gardens and open-air play. The completed garden is over an hectare in area and includes play structures and extensive planting among the existing trees; it is the first significant development within the Kew Gardens estate for over a decade.

Native Mix Instant Hedge

We won a competitive tender to supply 190 metres Green Beech and 200 metres of Mixed Native instant hedge. We grew our Practical Instant Hedges™ for Royal Botanic Gardens, here at out nursery in Iver. The Native Mix was made up in equal quantities of

Dogwood – Cornus sanguinea
Field Maple – Acer campestre
Hawthorn – Crataegus monogyna
Hazel – Corylus avellana
Hornbeam – Carpinus betulus