Creating a tranquil space in your garden while ensuring privacy has never been easier with the dimensional beauty of garden hedges and screens.
These green barriers not only effectively screen out unsightly areas but also form stunning garden features that draw the eye. With the right plant selection, you can achieve a stylish and serene outdoor environment. Here’s how to set up the perfect hedges and screens for your garden.
The Beauty of Low Hedges – Defining Spaces with Elegance
Low hedges are perfect for edging garden beds and defining distinct spaces within your landscape. Consider the classic Buxus species, which are not only easy to shape into a formal hedge but also reliable in maintaining their appeal year-round.
Another charming choice is the compact varieties of Camellia that can create an evergreen hedge, putting on a spectacular show with exquisite flowers throughout the seasons. Low hedges can complement your garden layout while adding layers of texture and colour.


Tall Hedges: Majestic Privacy
When privacy is essential, traditional evergreen options like Lilly Pillies, Portuguese Laurels (Prunus lusitanica), Laurustinus (Viburnum tinus), and Pittosporums are excellent choices. You can also consider native plants like Blueberry Ash (Elaeocarpus reticulatus), Bottlebrushes (Callistemon), Tea Trees (Leptospermum), or Hakeas for a lush touch.
If you prefer an aesthetic that changes with the seasons, deciduous plants like ornamental pear and ornamental plum trees provide visual intrigue while remaining functional. However, remember that being deciduous means you will experience reduced privacy in winter months.


Evergreen Screens: A Lush Barrier
Create a stunning wall of green in your garden with screening trees that possess gorgeous foliage and flowers. Choose varieties like Evergreen Magnolias, known for their lush, glossy leaves, or consider Agonis flexuosa for an excellent flowering tree option.
Other great candidates include flowering camellias, Forest She-oak (Allocasuarina torulosa), Juniperus ‘Spartan’, or the cascading weeping Lilly Pilly (Waterhousia floribunda) with its lush branches.


Narrow Areas Calling for Creativity
In areas where height is needed but width is limited, innovative choices can still yield beautiful results. The compact columnar form of Pyrus calleryana ‘Capital’ Pear offers lustrous dark green leaves while enriching autumn colour and spring blossoms.
For a Zen touch, consider clumping bamboo like Fargesia ‘Fortune’, known for its vertical growth pattern. Want to add an edible element? Look no further than Ballerina Apples—they’re not only attractive but also productive!


Physical Screens: Artistry in Function
For those seeking alternatives to hedges, a physical screen could be the answer. Use decorative panels, lattice, bamboo, plastic, or timber screens to establish defined areas within your garden while softening the look with wall art, clinging plants, ornamental shrubs, or even a tranquil water feature.


Climbing to New Heights
Hop on the climbing plant trend to raise the height of existing fences. Plants like Wisteria, Clematis, Mandevilla, and climbing star jasmine can wrap your fence in greenery and vibrancy. Additionally, consider edible climbers like passionfruit or nasturtium for a delightful twist.


Preparation and Care: Laying the Groundwork
Create a hedge or screen with a vision; a hole caused by a dying plant can disrupt your entire scheme. To keep your plants healthy and stunning, prepare the entire area by overhauling the soil with compost and organic matter.
Visit Kallinyalla Garden Centre to pick up water crystals to mix into the soil pre-planting, alongside using a seaweed-based tonic or fertiliser to promote robust root growth.


Spacing Techniques: A Harmonious Arrangement
To authentically stretch your hedging potential, learn the optimal plant spacing. A tighter-knit hedge that you intend to prune regularly will require plants to be placed closer together than normal spacing. A standard rule is to space plants about 1 meter apart if you want a hedge that reaches about 3 meters in height. For hedges aimed to stay around 1 meter high, a spacing of about 30 cm should suffice. On the other hand, informal hedges and screens can be spaced further apart to define the area naturally.
Pruning: Curate with Care
When it comes to pruning your garden gems, the approach of “little and often” tends to yield the best results. Begin trimming them young to promote an integrated, bushy growth habit. For an even appearance, try maintaining a slight angle—this will ensure that the top of your hedge isn’t shading out the bottom, leading to unattractive sparse patches.
If you prefer a naturalistic feel to informal hedges, give them a lighter touch. Always remember to prune flowering hedges after they bloom to preserve their blooms for the next season.
Creating meaningful hedges and screening plants requires thoughtfulness, patience, and basic understandings of plant care. Whatever your garden aesthetic, you’ll find joy in crafting spaces full of inviting beauty and delightful privacy. Preparing well now means you can enjoy the exquisite explosion of greenery in the seasons ahead!