Flowering Eco Hedge Collection for Limestone Soil

This is a collection of 10 varieties of shrubs, with deciduous or evergreen foliage, suitable for limestone soils, which will easily create a colourful and flowery hedge from late winter to autumn. They are robust, low-maintenance, and easy to grow. A collection of 10 plants in pots can create approximately 10 metres (33 feet) of hedge for limestone soil.

The collection consists of:

- 1 Abelia Edward Goucher: approximately 1.75 metres (6 feet) in all directions, bushy from the base. Long flowering period with a light fragrance, from July to late August depending on the climate, until October, with small pearly white bell-shaped flowers and pink-lilac reverse, followed by rusty-coloured bracts that are very decorative on the autumn foliage. Small glossy leaves, semi-evergreen to evergreen depending on the severity of the winter, light green in colour, turning bronze, purplish, or reddish under cold conditions.

- 1 Buddleia davidii Pink Delight - Butterfly Bush: approximately 3 metres (10 feet) in height by 4 metres (13 feet) in spread, fast-growing. Flowering from August to October at the tips of gracefully arched branches, with dense and upright clusters of 25 cm (10in) long, fragrant, and a beautiful bright pink colour. Its long deciduous leaves fall in autumn.

- 1 Chaenomeles superba - Japanese Quince Nicoline: approximately 1.50 metres (5 feet) in height by 1.75 metres (6 feet) in spread. Deciduous foliage, absent in winter. Honey-scented flowering in March-April, depending on the regions, with a very bright red colour, just before or at the same time as the appearance of the foliage, on its branches covered with long and sharp thorns. The large globular and fragrant yellow fruits are decorative and edible.

- 1 Cornus alba Elegantissima - White Dogwood: approximately 2 metres (7 feet) in all directions. Its grey-green foliage is margined and variegated with cream, turning pink and yellow in autumn before falling, revealing its dark coral red branches. Creamy white flowering in May-June, in small flat heads, followed by small round fruits with a bluish-white colour.

- 1 Cotinus coggygria Royal Purple - Smokebush: approximately 3.50 metres (11 feet) in height by 2.50 metres (8 feet) in width, with a slightly anarchic habit. Very beautiful deciduous foliage, dark purple-violet, turning into flaming colours in autumn before falling. Flowering in June, with panicles of small yellow-green flowers, turning into long panicles of smoky pink-purple colour. In autumn, both panicles and foliage take on sumptuous colours, ranging from orange to dark pink and scarlet red.

- 1 Escallonia Donard Seedling: approximately 2 metres (7 feet) in height by 2.50 metres (8 feet) in spread. Lovely evergreen foliage in winter, with a glossy dark green colour, which enhances its spring to summer flowering made of small pale pink to white bell-shaped flowers enclosed in pink calyxes. It briefly withstands temperatures down to -15°C (5°F).

- 1 Forsythia intermedia Spectabilis - Paris Mimosa: approximately 2.50 meters (8 feet) in height by 2 meters (7 feet) in spread, fast-growing. Deciduous foliage, absent in winter. It is one of the first to bloom at the end of winter, in March-April, and one of the most floriferous. Its small bright yellow flowers appear before the foliage, along the branches.

- 1 Syringa vulgaris Katherine Havemeyer - Lilac: approximately 4 metres (13 feet) in height by 3 metres (10 feet) in spread if not pruned. This variety bears numerous clusters of double and highly fragrant mauve flowers in May-June. Its flowers are ideal for making bouquets. Its medium green foliage is deciduous, falling in autumn.

- 1 Photinia Red Robin: evergreen, on average 3 metres (10 feet) in height by 2 metres (7 feet) in spread without pruning, distinguished by its red young shoots and leaves, contrasting with its mature glossy dark green foliage. Spring flowering (from March to May depending on the regions) with clusters of small flowers of an uncertain white colour, fragrant and honey-scented. Its foliage persists in winter.

- 1 Viburnum opulus Roseum - Snowball Tree: approximately 2.50 metres (8 feet) in height by 2 metres (7 feet) in spread. This snowball tree bears cream-white flowers that bloom from May to June, then give way to very beautiful red fruits sought after by birds. Its deciduous foliage is dark green, turning red in autumn before falling. Its cream-white flowers bloom from May to June, then give way to very beautiful red fruits sought after by birds.

Plant these shrubs preferably in autumn or early spring, in full sun or partial shade, mixing them and spacing them about 1 metre (3 feet) apart. They tolerate well-prepared garden soil, including limestone, improved with leaf compost to help them establish. Once well-established, they can do without watering in summer. A hedge planted 2 metres (7 feet) from the property boundary should not exceed 2 metres (7 feet) in height.

Advice: Do not prune at the beginning of the season to fully enjoy the flowering! If possible, also avoid pruning at the end of summer to enjoy the fruits and feed the garden birds in winter.