Why a mixed native hedge works so well

A hedge made from a single species, clipped hard and often, offers birds remarkably little. A mixed native hedge does three jobs at once: it provides shelter, it offers nesting sites, and it supplies food in the form of berries, seeds and the insects that live on the leaves. Native shrubs such as hawthorn, blackthorn and hazel support hundreds of insect species between them, and that insect life is exactly the protein that growing chicks need through spring.

A varied mix also spreads the risk. Different shrubs flower and fruit at different times, so if a late frost spoils the hawthorn blossom, the guelder rose or elder may still crop well. And a hedge that is thick at the base and tapers slightly towards the top gives dunnocks, robins, wrens and blackbirds the tucked-away, sheltered nesting spots they prefer.

Choosing the right mix for your soil and space

Aim for five to seven species, weighted towards two or three strong structural shrubs that will carry the hedge's shape. Bare-root plants are cheapest and establish best, but garden centres sell potted natives if you are planting in summer.

• Hawthorn — the backbone of almost every British hedgerow. Dense, thorny and superb nesting cover, with May blossom and red haws in autumn.
• Blackthorn — the earliest blossom of the year for pollinators, sloes for winter thrushes, and a favourite of the brown hairstreak butterfly. It suckers, so give it room.
• Hazel — happy on heavier, damper soils, with catkins in late winter and nuts that small mammals will find before you do.
• Holly — evergreen, so it provides year-round cover and a safe nest site, plus berries in the leanest weeks of winter.
• Guelder rose — white lace-like flowers in summer and translucent red berries that blackbirds strip by November.
• Dog rose and field maple — hips for thrushes and a good, tolerant tree for clay soils. Field maple turns a fine butter yellow in autumn.
• Spindle and wild cherry — spindle has vivid pink berries and autumn colour; wild cherry gives blossom, fruit and handsome bark.

If your soil is soggy, lean on hazel, guelder rose and willow. On thin, chalky ground, hawthorn, field maple and wayfaring tree will cope far better.

Planting for a hedge that lasts

Plant bare-root shrubs between November and March, while they are dormant. Space them 30–45cm apart in a double, staggered row if you want a really thick wildlife hedge; 45–60cm in a single row is fine where space is tighter. Dig a trench, fork in plenty of well-rotted organic matter, and set each plant at the same depth it was growing before. Firm the soil around the roots and water well.

Mulch with 5–8cm of bark or garden compost, keeping it clear of the stems so they do not rot. Water thoroughly through the first two summers — this is the single thing most people skip, and it is the difference between a hedge that romps away and one that sulks. Cut the leaders back by a third after planting to encourage bushy growth from the base.

Leave a metre of rough grass or leaf litter along the base rather than paving right up to the stems. That strip hides the hedge bottom, feeds the soil and gives cover to frogs, beetles and shrews.

The winter trim: light touch, right month

The biggest mistake is the annual hard cut in late summer. Trim lightly instead, in late winter — usually February — once the berries have been eaten and well before birds begin nesting in March. Never cut a hedge between March and August; even a light tidy-up in May can expose a nest or send a sitting bird away for good.

Before you start, look at the hedge and the ground beneath it. Hedgehogs, toads and queen bumblebees hibernate in the leaf litter at the base, so check carefully and leave the bottom untouched. Take no more than a third off the growth, and keep the base wider than the top so light still reaches the lower branches — otherwise the hedge goes bare and leggy and loses much of its value. If a hedge is badly overgrown, cut one section each year on rotation and let the rest grow on.

Small extras that make a hedge a home

Let a patch of ivy climb through part of the hedge. It flowers late, when little else does, and its berries ripen in spring just as blackbirds and thrushes need them most.

Position hanging feeders within a couple of metres of the hedge so birds have somewhere to dash when a sparrowhawk appears, but not so close that cats can hide in the branches and pounce. A shallow dish of water nearby, refreshed daily and kept ice-free in winter, will be used constantly — for drinking and for bathing, which keeps feathers in good condition through cold weather.

Resist the urge to tidy every fallen leaf. A little pile of prunings or a small log stack at the end of the hedge will be occupied within weeks by beetles, centipedes and, if you are lucky, a hibernating hedgehog.

What to expect in the first few years

Year one is about roots; you may see very little above ground. Year two brings real growth, and by year three the hedge should be thick enough to tempt its first nesting pair — usually dunnocks or robins, low down and well hidden. Do not expect berries in quantity until the third or fourth autumn, and leave the hedge to fruit rather than trimming it hard in a good year.

Even three metres of native hedge in a small garden makes a genuine difference. Give it time, keep the pruning light, and it will repay you every spring with birdsong coming from somewhere you made.