Planting edible hedges for privacy and productivity.
Hedges are a useful addition to the garden and landscape.
In cities and suburban areas, they can provide privacy, disguise a fence or other unsightly structure, and create a wall of green in an area that can otherwise feel a little enclosed.
Hedges visually extend your property by hiding the boundary and neighbouring structures, creating an illusion of space. In rural areas, they are often used for very different purposes: to slow winds, provide shade and define a boundary. In some areas, hedges have been used successfully to slow fires.
The history of hedges in the landscape dates back to the first known large plantings of grain and cereal crops during the Neolithic period (4,000–6,000 years ago), where they were used to protect the crops from adverse weather conditions, creating a favourable microclimate for cultivation.
Several thousands of years later, during Medieval times, hedges peaked in popularity as they were used to define the boundaries of the workable land allotments that had once formed part of the expansive English estates.
In Australia, more specifically Melbourne, the rise in popularity of traditional hedges during the 1990s has been attributed to renowned landscape designer Paul Bangay. Paul invigorated the art of pleaching, highlighting another important asset of the hedge – a visual anchor, as well as a screen.
In another garden closer to our heart, Jeremy Francis successfully uses a mixture of tall hedges at Cloudehill. This breaks the garden into a series of distinct rooms, while using low growing hedging helps define garden beds and parterres in the traditional style seen in gardens across Europe and the UK.
The use of hedging in parterres brings structure to what may otherwise be a ‘messy’ combination of naturally sprawling plants, like herbs. While ornamental hedging plants were traditionally used, this seems completely counterintuitive when you can use a different plant that will offer you a little more for your table.
Even several centuries ago, space was important. Monastries would regularly utilise all available space in their medicinal gardens, often using rosemary hedging to define the garden beds, while also providing another useful component for their treatments and kitchens.
The permaculture movement started in Australia in the late 1970s but gained momentum at the turn of this century. We began questioning if a productive plant could replace an ornamental, and in many situations, it can.
Now I’m not suggesting you pull out your existing hedge, but if you do need to replace it, or are looking at planting a new hedge, look for plants that serve the purpose of the hedge, but can give you a little bit of produce too.