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PLEASE NOTE: These plants are bare root so whilst they can be ordered now they will be shipped between November and March as this is the only time they can be planted. When you order a pack or an individual plant please choose the delivery date you want between November 10th 2018 and March 31st 2019.
Foraging is a good way of enjoying food for free, but all too often you find yourself struggling to reach the best fruit or dodging traffic down narrow country lanes. Wouldn't it be nice to just pop out into the back garden and pick some wild berries and nuts?
Here on the farm, we're used to being able to pop out and harvest food for free - whether we fancy a few mushrooms, nuts or some fruit, there is an abundance of free food available on our doorstep.
Planning an Edible Hedge
Just recently there seems to be even more “foraging mania!” Nowadays folk are not just into blackberries and damsons, but they are onto the nuts, the elderberries and the sloes. If you love making your own jam, syrups and hedgerow tipples why not plant an Edible Hedge? You can of course add a few edibles in amongst your existing hedge – YUM!
You’ll have blackthorn (for sloe gin), crab apple (for jelly), damson (for jam and a luscious homemade alternative to Ribena), dog rose (for rosehip syrup), elderberry (for flu-preventing syrups from the berries in autumn and delicious cordial from the flowers in spring), hazel (for cob nuts), cherry plum and wild pear (for jams, liqueurs and syrups).
These arrive as bare-root plants from November through until March which makes them a really inexpensive project, and they are extremely easy to plant. It’s certainly a much cheaper and more attractive way of creating a boundary than buying a fence or building a wall – if you don't have space for a long boundary hedge, how about screening a compost bin or marking a vegetable patch? In the Wiggly Garden we have a Wiggly Hedge separating the Wildflower Meadow from the Pond.
If planted properly bare-root plants should fill out happily in just a couple of years, and many start fruiting the following year. Any produce not eaten by yourself will be happily devoured by the birds – who will also enjoy nesting and roosting in the tightly knit heart of the established hedge – so everyone’s a winner.
Getting ready for your hedge.
A few weeks before planting, clear the area of pervasive weeds.
Dig over the soil if it needs it, removing any large roots or stones. You can plant straight into the soil as the hedge will grow up and eventually smother the weeds or you can lay polypropylene mulch matting along the line of the hedge (– this will not only prevent weeds but will also help retain moisture.
If rabbits are a problem, our tree guard spirals will be handy. Happy Foraging.
Now you too could enjoy your own crop of 'Wild Food' with this Edible Hedge Pack.
The plants you'll receive include:
Blackthorn (for Sloe Gin) , Crab Apple (for jelly), Cherry Plum (for jam), Dog Rose (for Rosehip syrup), Elderberry (for delicious cordial from the flowers in spring), Hazel (for Nuts), Wild Pear (for jams, liqueurs and syrups),
Small Pack 25 mixed plants for 3-4m of hedge
Medium Pack 50 mixed plants for 6-8m of hedge
Large Pack 100 mixed plants for 13-15m of hedge
Pruning Hedging plants should be pruned during Autumn/Winter as this is when the plants are dormant. The hedge will grow as tall as you allow it to, annual pruning will keep it in check.
Available from late November until the end of March.
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