Garden-Friendly Shrubs: A Ranking of 10 Ideal Hedge Plants for Your Outdoor Space
In the quest for the perfect garden hedge, choosing the right plants is crucial. Here, we present a selection of ten hedge plants that cater to various climates and conditions, offering adaptability, striking appearances, and growth habits to suit your landscaping needs.
For mild to warm climates (US zones 7-10), the Mexican Orange (Choisya ternata) is an evergreen, fragrant choice, with its citrus-like flowers adding a delightful scent to your garden. In colder areas, it can be grown in pots, making it a versatile option. The Kei Apple (Dovyalis afra) is another evergreen choice, with dense thorny branches providing a security hedge and non-aggressive roots. Photinia, with its glossy leaves and vibrant color changes in new growth, is another vibrant option for mild climates.
In colder or temperate zones (zones 4-8), hardy and wildlife-friendly choices include the Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna), with its dense, spiky branches and white flowers, and the Wild Mockorange (Philadelphus lewisii), offering a great scent and attracting pollinators. Leylandii, a fast-growing evergreen, provides a dense privacy screen with deep green or golden-yellow foliage.
Coastal and harsh conditions call for plants like the Coast Silver Oak (Brachylaena discolor), a drought-resistant, fast-growing plant with silvery-blue foliage, ideal as a windbreak. Viburnum is another suitable choice, good for coastal conditions and known for its dense foliage.
Privet (Ligustrum ovalifolium) and Pittosporum (Pittosporum tenuifolium) offer versatile, classic hedging options. Privet is a classic formal hedge, dense and bushy, while Pittosporum responds well to clipping and offers elegant leaves in various colors.
Other noteworthy mentions include the Lantana, a colorful hard shrub that can grow up to 2 to 4 meters tall and form dense thickets as hedges or grow in the pattern of a vine. Kodiak plants, with lovely orange foliage and yellow flowers in summer, are adaptable to various types of soils and drought-tolerant. Mussaenda plants, also known as Bangkok Roses, grow best in tropical or subtropical areas, with pink or yellow flowers and huge white, pink, or red petals.
Coleus plants, belonging to the mint family, provide colorful foliage in various shapes, sizes, and colors. They thrive in partial to full sunlight and require loose soil with compost or moss for fertility and moist but not soggy soil. Eranthemum plants, originating from Southeast Asia, bloom with beautiful blue flowers in colder months, from December to March, and require regular pruning.
When planting hedge plants, it's best to do so in autumn or spring, as it can take months to years for the saplings to grow fully into hedges. Whether you're looking for formal dense hedges or informal wildlife-friendly borders, these plants cover a broad range of growth habits, making them suitable for various landscaping needs and climates.
The Mexican Orange (Choisya ternata) is a fragrant evergreen choice for mild to warm climates, adding a delightful citrus-like scent to your garden. In colder areas, the Kei Apple (Dovyalis afra) is another evergreen option with dense thorny branches and non-aggressive roots.
For colder or temperate zones, consider plants like the Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) with dense, spiky branches and white flowers, or the Wild Mockorange (Philadelphus lewisii) that attracts pollinators. In coastal and harsh conditions, opt for drought-resistant plants such as the Coast Silver Oak (Brachylaena discolor) or Viburnum.
Noteworthy mentions include Lantana, a colorful hard shrub that grows well in various soils and drought-tolerant conditions, and Mussaenda plants, which thrive in tropical or subtropical areas with pink or yellow flowers. When planting hedge plants, it's best to do so in autumn or spring for proper growth, catering to a broad range of landscaping needs and climates.
