15% PRE-ORDER DISCOUNT ON BARE ROOT PLANTS. USE CODE BARE15 AT CHECKOUT. DELIVERIES BEGIN FROM 2 NOVEMBER5–12.5% OFF POTTED PLANTS, ROOT BALLS, & INSTANT HEDGING ORDERS OVER £300. DISCOUNT AUTOMATICALLY APPLIED AT CHECKOUT (NO CODE NEEDED)
Green Beech (Fagus sylvatica) hedging plant summary
Native
Retains most of its leaves in winter but is technically not an evergreen
Has green leaves in spring and summer, turning coppery in autumn
Good for formal hedging, retaining a neat shape over a long period of time, and also good as a woodland tree
Easy to trim
Non-toxic
Mature plants produce beech nuts which are popular with wildlife
Good for hedges from 1m up to 10m or even taller
Medium growth rate
If you are claiming a farm grant, you need to use 45/60cm 2 year old bare root plants, planted at 6 per metre (grant rules)
All the smaller bare root plants on this page are grown in Britain and some of the taller ones are from Holland (where they specialise in great quality tall Beech bare roots
We have many different sizes of bare root plant because this is such a popular species, and we also have pot grown, cell grown, root balls and 1m long instant hedging troughs. Please do contact us if you require any size options that are not shown here. Bare roots and root balls are only available in the dormant season (November to April)
this species is also suitable to use as a hedgerow tree (planting density 1 every 5-10m) or in woodland creation (planting density 1 every 2-3sqm)
Please contact us by phone (or you can email us at hello@hedgenursery.co.uk) if you have any questions, would like any advice, or if your order is likely to come to over £1000 - we may be able to offer a better price than the online price. We have experienced horticulturists answering calls and emails and we’re always very happy to help.
Green Beech hedging (Fagus sylvatica) is one of the most attractive single species hedge plants that you can buy and it gives two completely different “looks” depending on the season. In Spring and Summer, the new bright green leaves emerge from brown, sharply pointed buds. The leaves are broad and eliptical, shiny with silky hairs and their wavy edges flutter in the wind and then in autumn the leaves turns bronze coloured and those leaves stay on the hedge throughout the winter. A few leaves blow off in the wind in Winter and the hedge becomes a little more see-through but still a good dense barrier. Then as we approach Spring again, the new buds push off the old leaves and it all begins again. It is not, strictly speaking, an evergreen hedge but it still provides a year-round barrier and hence is it is one of our most popular species of hedging plant.
The ability of beech trees/hedging plants to retain dead material (leaves) instead of shedding in Autumn is a natural process known as "marcescence" and it is believed to be to protect new leaf buds and twig growth from being browsed by animals - the crisp dead leaves being unpalatable.
In addition to making a superb hedge, Beech can also be grown as a tree for woodlands or gardens. Beech woodlands are very atmospheric environments, casting dappled shade and with the crunch underfoot of beech nuts contained within bristly brown husks.
Beech plants are relatively fast growing when young and will quickly grow into a mature hedge, but then it is easy to keep to a neat shape, non-prickly and makes a dense hedge suitable for nests and habitats. Beech hedging can be any height you want – it is fine at 1m tall, makes a lovely 2 – 3m tall hedge, but equally it can be allowed to grow to an enormous height.
Mature beech trees produce beech nuts, which are very high in protein and monounsaturated fat, and are very popular with a range of birds (Great Tit, Jay, Lesser Spotted Woodpecker, Nuthatch and Siskin) as well as squirrels, mice and voles – and it is these beech nuts that are sown by the nursery, which go on to produce our plants of the future. Mature beech trees grow to 30m in height with a spread of about 20m.
As a native species of the UK, it is suitable to be grown in most soil conditions other than damp soil where a similar appearance can be achieved using Hornbeam hedging plants. Beech likes a bit of sunshine but will grow in all but the densest shade.
Hedging plants can be planted in single or double rows (3 - 5 per metre for single rows and 4 - 7 per metre for double staggered rows). See our planting guide. Whilst all bare root plants need to be planted quickly after delivery, it is particularly important that Beech plants are not left more than a few days so please do your site preparation in advance.
Our nursery grows Beech bare root hedging plants from seed and because it is grown in vast quantities (hundreds of thousands of plants each year) it is much cheaper than buying Beech plants in pots or Beech root balls. Most of the bare root plants are grown in Herefordshire and because it is grown from seed in the UK, our plants are completely acclimatised to UK weather already and the nursery is registered with Plant Healthy which is a very strict plant biosecurity code of conduct, so you can be certain that you’re buying British grown, healthy and hardy plants. Only the taller bare root plants and root balls are grown in Holland where they are experts at growing tall Beech. This is our advice page if you'd like to read more about bare root plants and how they are grown and we also have an advice page about root ball hedging. Pot grown, cell grown and instant Beech hedging are all grown in Britain.
Whether you want to buy Beech hedging plants that are young and inexpensive or more mature plants that will give you a virtually instant hedge if planted sufficiently densely (and once they come out into leaf again in spring), Hedge Nursery has a solution for you. We have supplied vast quantities of bare root and root ball Beech hedging plants over many years – our Feefo reviews are excellent, and you can buy Beech hedging with confidence knowing that you will receive top quality plants that will give you an excellent hedge.
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DELIVERY CHARGES
Delivery charges are automatically calculated at checkout, based on the size of the plants and the value of your order. Our delivery charges and the kick-in points for free delivery are highly competitive, and about 90% of orders are delivered free.
Plant Type
UK Mainland (excl. Scottish Highlands and Islands)
Scottish Highlands
Bare root plants shorter than 100cm, all cell-grown plants, plants in pots up to 7 Litres
Free for orders over £120 (or £9.90)
Free for orders over £120 (or £14.99)
Bare root plants 100-120cm
Free for orders over £300 (or £24.99)
Free for orders over £300 (or £29.99)
Bare root plants taller than 120cm, plants in pots larger than 7.5 Litres, all root ball plants and instant hedging
Free for orders over £350 (or £59.99)
£112.99
Notes:
All prices include VAT.
Orders of plants requiring delivery on pallets (bare root plants taller than 120cm, plants in pots larger than 7.5 Litres, root ball plants, and instant hedging) delivered to destinations in the UK Mainland are delivered free when the order is over £350, regardless of the number of pallets needed.
Scottish Highlands do not have a free pallet delivery option.
DESPATCH TIMELINES
Most plant specifications are in stock, so we typically dispatch within a few days after you order. Generally, we don't dispatch on Fridays, to avoid plants being in transit over a weekend. Rest assured that we will do everything we can to deliver your plants as soon as possible.
You'll receive an email from us on the despatch day, and delivery will occur within 48 hours - usually the next day, but occasionally it may take an extra day.
If you'd like to delay delivery to a date that suits your planting schedule, please include a note in the Delivery Instructions section at checkout or email us at hello@hedgenursery.co.uk.
We do not take responsibility for any deliveries delayed by couriers.
Pre-orders
For pre-ordered plants with an expected future delivery date (shown before you added them to your basket), we will dispatch around the indicated date. If your order includes both pre-order and in-stock items, we'll send everything together when the pre-order items become available.
Root Ball Plants
Root-ball plants are freshly lifted from our fields upon order. This approach ensures the plants are at their freshest when you receive them, improving their success rate. If you want delivery on a specific date, please order well in advance of when you need them.
During peak season, we lift root-ball plants twice weekly, aiming to deliver within 3-7 days. During busy periods, this may extend to 7-14 days. As the season slows, we lift once a week, with delivery within 7 working days. We'll promptly inform you of any stock unavailability or delivery delays upon receiving your order.
RECEIVING DELIVERY (Do I need to be at home?)
All deliveries will be sent with “no signature required”, so you do not need to be at home on the day of delivery.
For pallet deliveries, we will phone or email you on the day we dispatch. If you wish, you can arrange for someone to be there the following day to ensure the pallet is left in a convenient place for you to unpack the plants.
Pallets are delivered to the ‘kerbside’, but if there is driveway access for a pallet truck, the pallet will be left on the driveway or another suitable access point to your address, rather than blocking a road or pavement. Pallet trucks require a hard surface; pallets cannot be moved over gravel, soft or uneven ground, or grass.
Drivers do not unpack the pallets and it is down to the drivers discretion whether they will take the empty pallet away. If not, then customers must dispose of the pallet themselves.
RETURNS
We are rarely asked to accept a return. We can facilitate returns by collecting the parcel (s) or palletised plants from you (in their original packaging), but we do not refund the delivery charge or the carrier collection and delivery back to us. We do not accept returns if you have ordered too many plants.
If you wish to return an order, please email hello@hedgenursery.co.uk, and we will explain the process in more detail.
Pots, bare roots, root balls, instant, cell grown, P9s - if it's all double Dutch, this explanation should help you decide which root type is best for you.
The majority of hedging plants are sold as bare roots, pot grown, or root balls, so we'll start with those.
Bare Root Hedging
For many years, we only sold bare roots, so there's a lot of advice on our website about bare root plants. Here's a very quick summary, along with links to other pages you might find helpful.
Bare root plants are grown in open fields and lifted during the winter months when dormant. This is the cheapest and most environmentally friendly growing method, so they are usually the best option if you are planting from November to April and the species and height combination you want is available as bare roots (about 80% of the species on this website are available as bare roots).
We sell hundreds of thousands of bare root plants each year to thousands of customers and, for a cost-effective solution, they're hard to beat.
Everyone knows what a pot grown plant looks like, but there is often confusion about pot sizes and what you get for your money. Generally, with some exceptions, the bigger the pot size, the more mature, bushier and taller the plant will be - and the more costly.
Pot sizes are always described by the number of litres they hold. Our standard pot sizes are 2L, 5L and 10L (where L stands for litres). Pot dimensions from different manufacturers can vary, even though they all hold the same amount of growing medium, so sizes are specified by volume rather than the pot's dimensions.
There are several benefits to pot grown plants:
The range of species is very wide, with some only available in pots.
There is no root disturbance because they are grown in pots rather than lifted from fields, so the success rate is extremely high.
They can be planted year-round, though we always advise caution when planting in extremely warm weather - water generously until they are established!
Root Ball Hedging
For large plants, particularly big, bushy evergreens, the most popular root type is root balls. They are cheaper than pot-grown plants of the same height and often bushier, but they are only available during the dormant season, usually from October to April.
They're environmentally friendly because they are grown in open fields, but instead of lifting the plant bare rooted, soil is retained around the roots and wrapped in hessian. They are not quite as eco-friendly as bare roots because root balls are heavy to transport.
Instant hedging involves planting several plants (normally 5) into a 1 metre long trough and allowing them to knit together into a hedge, so that when planted by you, you get an instant effect.
Compared with other root forms, they are relatively expensive because if a single plant fails at the nursery, the whole trough is ruined. There is also a huge cost in nursery time because the plants are trimmed into a hedge shape by the nursery team and, in some more mature instant hedging, this is done many times so that the hedge becomes extremely dense.
Instant hedging is very popular and available year-round, and we are continually expanding the range of species grown this way. There's more information on instant hedging here, and we also have a blog explaining the benefits, drawbacks and how it is grown.
Cell Grown Plants
Small cell grown plants are grown by specialist nurseries in containers about the size of a small yoghurt pot, though a bit deeper because hedging plants and trees naturally have deep roots.
They are a cost-effective solution when gardeners are willing to wait for plants to grow, and they're ideal for infilling where there isn't enough space to plant larger root types. They are also often used by foresters because they are lightweight to carry to remote areas, easy to plant and have a high success rate, reducing the need for replanting.
They are increasingly used by home gardeners as hedging plants because, although they don't have the size and bushiness of pot-grown plants, they are less expensive and available year-round, making them a good alternative to small bare roots outside the bare root season.
There is very little root disturbance or loss of the fine feeding roots that plants rely upon when moved, so the success rate is extremely high. All our cell grown plants are grown in Britain.
We show prices in various bands depending on quantity, but if you are planting a woodland and need larger quantities, please contact us for a bespoke quote.
We're always happy to advise by phone or email, so please don't hesitate to contact us if you have any questions about the best root type for you.
