Hedges do more than fencing
Hedge plants can be used as a form of design by covering certain areas of a building and as a means of dividing the garden into sections.
By Harriet Birungi
Hedge plants can be used as a form of design by covering certain areas of a building and as a means of dividing the garden into sections.
Dwarf hedges can be used for making attractive ground patterns, while the repetition of one plant over and over, provides a restful picture to the eyes, says Margaret Musanibala, a gardener.
“By alternating different foliage colour plants, a restful impact will be created as the hedge grows and is trimmed.†And to have true enjoyment, you only have to think of an area of a lawn so that hedges and the grass can blend, she advises.
Musanabila says the in-vogue duranta plant with yellow leaves, brings out the restful garden appearance when planted as a hedge.
Hedges can also hide unsightly objects, provide privacy, muffle unwelcome sounds, exclude unwanted animals, mildly restrain adventurous children and define boundaries of property. However, the gardener says it is the type of hedge that determines any of these functions.
Tall formal hedges make boundaries and barriers, while shorter formal hedges are for subdividing a garden space. A mix of species and varieties of hedge plants provide foliage colour and a decorative look of flowering.
Hedges are good, because they allow some wind to pass through, but with its force and power to harm markedly diminished, while solid fences, prevent the wind from filtering through.
The optimum height of a hedge is often a matter of personal taste.
If you wish simply to define a boundary, but retain your own view as is often the case in gardens on open-plan estates, then 3ft to 4ft tall is plenty. If you need to be hidden from the garden next door, you need a hedge that grows above eye-level, to about 6ft tall.
However, in the interest of harmony, it is better to agree on the matter with your neighbours first.
Large gardens with formal designs are protected and set off magnificently by tall imposing hedges, says Musanabila.
She adds that grown at the entrance, an evergreen hedge provides maximum privacy. But that person that loves duranta, the trick is in growing it in area where there is enough sun so that its leaves turn yellow as it grows.
Hedge plants can be used as a form of design by covering certain areas of a building and as a means of dividing the garden into sections.
Dwarf hedges can be used for making attractive ground patterns, while the repetition of one plant over and over, provides a restful picture to the eyes, says Margaret Musanibala, a gardener.
“By alternating different foliage colour plants, a restful impact will be created as the hedge grows and is trimmed.†And to have true enjoyment, you only have to think of an area of a lawn so that hedges and the grass can blend, she advises.
Musanabila says the in-vogue duranta plant with yellow leaves, brings out the restful garden appearance when planted as a hedge.
Hedges can also hide unsightly objects, provide privacy, muffle unwelcome sounds, exclude unwanted animals, mildly restrain adventurous children and define boundaries of property. However, the gardener says it is the type of hedge that determines any of these functions.
Tall formal hedges make boundaries and barriers, while shorter formal hedges are for subdividing a garden space. A mix of species and varieties of hedge plants provide foliage colour and a decorative look of flowering.
Hedges are good, because they allow some wind to pass through, but with its force and power to harm markedly diminished, while solid fences, prevent the wind from filtering through.
The optimum height of a hedge is often a matter of personal taste.
If you wish simply to define a boundary, but retain your own view as is often the case in gardens on open-plan estates, then 3ft to 4ft tall is plenty. If you need to be hidden from the garden next door, you need a hedge that grows above eye-level, to about 6ft tall.
However, in the interest of harmony, it is better to agree on the matter with your neighbours first.
Large gardens with formal designs are protected and set off magnificently by tall imposing hedges, says Musanabila.
She adds that grown at the entrance, an evergreen hedge provides maximum privacy. But that person that loves duranta, the trick is in growing it in area where there is enough sun so that its leaves turn yellow as it grows.