Why Buy Our Hedging Trees?

• All our hedging trees are covered by our FREE TREE WARRANTY
• Grown in Scotland which makes the plants much hardier (used to bad weather)
• FREE DELIVERY (UK Mainland, Not Scottish Highlands)
• Plug plants can be planted all year round

Portugal Laurel Hedging (Prunus lusitanica)

A close alternative if out of stock is Cherry Laurel  

Portugal Laurel is a good evergreen hedging / topiary choice and is hardy, even more so than its close relative Cherry Laurel (Prunus laurocerasus). Having received the RHS Award Of Garden Merit, it must be doing something right and is a good choice for making ornamental statements such as Avenue planting or attractive hedging. 

The young leaves have a reddish tinge and are held on red stalks which turn into a year long shiny green leaves. Early Summer (around June) and your Portugal Laurel hedge will display insect friendly Hawthorn scented, small cup shaped and fragrant white flowers. These develop into dark purple/red fruits that then turn black (harmful if eaten, bitter to the taste). Portugal Laurel was once planted where game birds fed because it was believed the berries made the meat taste better. 

Due to the shape of the leaves, the Portugal Laurel is often mistaken for Bay Laurel and they have cyanide in them that is released if burned or crushed. As we have never heard of Russian spies disposing of political enemies by making them eat a hedge we suspect it is not in extremely high amounts.

English Heritage's Brodsworth Hall in Yorkshire roughly cut their Portugal Laurel trees three times a year in February, July and October to promote new growth and therefore expose more red stems and leaves. For the less enthusiastic and time poor normal people that buy these hedges, a trim in June will suffice. 

Good for most soils particularly chalk although windy or exposed positions would yield less than perfect results. We are not sure what would happen if planted in ideal soil conditions but in the window box of a lighthouse, if you are such a person, maybe you could let us know? Portugal Laurel is rarely found in the wild but when it is, it is usually next to mountain streams. Despite the mental image this generates, it is a drought tolerant species. 

If left to grow without man made interference over zealous retired people on shaky ladders and high revving chain saws then Portugal Laurel will grow to around 15m with a 12m spread.  

Planting 2 per metre for a single row of hedging trees will suffice or 4 per metre for double staggered hedging however you can vary these numbers if you wish.

Site Conditions And Evergreen Tree List
Our tree chart details which site conditions suit which trees and also which are evergreen or semi-evergreen.

Feeding Or Fertilizing Hedges
This is a task that can easily be over done. Any nitrogen based fertilizer will do such as 20:20:10 but the longer lasting ones which take 18/24 months are better as they are regulated by the weather and moisture therefore release slowly. 

Second line of hedging
We recommend planting the second line of trees 25cm or 10 inches away from the first if using the staggered hedging approach. Consider buying 10% more than you need and plant the spares elsewhere so you have immediate replacements for damaged or diseased trees.

Mixing orders
Some people want to make a small part of their order a different species e.g inserting dog rose every few trees. As we can touch our toes therefore proving we are flexible, we are happy to accommodate. 

Please be aware that the urine extractors using the website will have their order refunded. All orders are human approved first and we are paying attention...mostly. Just mention at checkout what you require.

For all hedging protection please view the Tree Extra section and if you are looking to plant lots of plug plant or cell grown trees (the 10-40cm-ish) size range then maybe you should consider our tree planting tool. Tree planting rates of over 700 per day achievable.

Hedge Growth Rates
For information on rates of growth please click "Hedge Growth Rates"

Using Bark or wood chip mulch for hedging trees
If you are going to use bark or wood chip as a mulch for hedging trees, please be aware that mice like to use this as a nest/home/holiday retreat/rental property for other mice. They like to eat the bark (especially Beech) and you are provided them a place to stay close to a food source. If you are going to use bark or wood chip as a mulch, periodically check for damage especially below the mulch layer. Alternatively use gravel or plastic sheeting as a method of keeping weeds down or you could try the legal route and serve them with a notice of eviction?

Adding Fragrance And Colour To Your Hedge.
Honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum) is a very popular addition to any garden due to the strong fragrance, splash of colours and interest it generates from other wildlife. Click the link to find out more.

Multiple Order Discount
Orders over £1000 can be discounted by contacting us on 01623 812711