← All guides · Species & planting · Published August 2026 · Richard Lim

A mixed native hedgerow for a Deal or Walmer garden. Which species, in what proportions, and where the coast changes the usual recipe.

The standard UK advice for a mixed native hedgerow is 60 to 70 per cent hawthorn. That works on chalk downland and heavy clay. On the coastal alluvium and shingle-over-clay ground of Deal, Walmer and Kingsdown, it needs adjusting. Hawthorn is still a backbone species in the mix, but on a first-line seafront plot the salt wind from the Downs Roads cuts back young hawthorn noticeably harder than blackthorn or wild privet. Here is the version I actually plant when someone in CT14 wants a country-style native hedge rather than a formal single-species boundary.

A mixed native hedgerow uses several species planted together in a staggered row, typically three to five plants per metre. The species knit together as they establish and eventually form a self-supporting, varied hedge that clips into a formal outline or is left to grow informally. The species mix matters: some plants are backbones that carry most of the structure, some are fillers that close the gaps early, and some are variety plants that add berries, flowers or winter colour without needing to do heavy lifting.

In Deal and Walmer I work with seven species for most mixed-hedge jobs. The table below sets them out side by side on the factors that actually change with CT14's coastal conditions: how much salt they handle, how quickly they establish on coastal alluvium, what they contribute to the structure, and what they cost as bare-root whips bought in quantity.

The two backbone species, and why the coast shifts the balance between them.

Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna) is the right choice for the largest share of most mixed native hedges. It is thorny enough to deter anything from rabbits to people, it grows on virtually any soil including the coastal alluvium of lower Deal and Walmer, and it supports over 300 invertebrate species. On a sheltered plot in Upper Deal or inland Mill Hill, 50 per cent hawthorn is a sensible starting point.

On a seafront plot facing north-east toward the Downs Roads, I scale hawthorn back. Young hawthorn in its first two winters is noticeably more susceptible to salt scorch on a first-line plot than blackthorn is. The tips die back, the plant recovers, but it takes a season longer to close. If the client wants a closed hedge within five years rather than seven, putting more blackthorn into the mix is a practical response to the location.

Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) is as thorny as hawthorn and more wind-tolerant when young. Its early white blossom (February to April) appears before the leaves, which makes it visually striking when everything else is still bare. The sloe crop in autumn is useful for birds and was historically the reason it was included in farm hedges along the Kent coastline. For a seafront plot in lower Walmer or along the Deal seafront between Victoria Parade and John Monash Drive, I tip the balance to 35 per cent blackthorn and 25 per cent hawthorn rather than the other way round.

The two species are compatible and interplant well. In a five-plants-per-metre staggered row, a rough alternation of hawthorn and blackthorn with the other species slotted in every third or fourth position is a workable starting point.

The filler and variety species: what each one adds and what it does not do well.

Field maple (Acer campestre) is the one species on the list that genuinely does not like the bare seafront. It handles normal Kent conditions well but salt scorch on a first-line plot sets it back severely in the first two or three years. I use it on second-line Walmer plots and on any Deal job far enough from the shore to have reasonable shelter. On an inland Mill Hill hedge it is a good choice: it grows steadily, holds its own against hawthorn, and gives the hedge genuine autumn colour in October.

Hazel (Corylus avellana) is the other species I keep back from the most exposed plots. On a sheltered second-line garden in upper Walmer or on a walled Deal terrace it establishes quickly and contributes significantly in the first four years. The January catkins are one of the few sources of pollen for early bumblebees. The nut crop feeds dormice and great tits. I would not leave it out of any inland CT14 mix.

Dog rose (Rosa canina) is the scrambler. It does not stand up on its own the way hawthorn does: it uses the other plants for support and threads itself through the hedge as it grows. That behaviour makes it worth having in a mix even at five per cent of the total, because the red hips it produces in October and November are eaten by fieldfares and redwings: winter thrushes that move along the Kingsdown-to-Dover coast in late October and through November. On the Kingsdown cliff-top hedges I almost always include a small percentage of dog rose precisely for that reason.

Dogwood (Cornus sanguinea) is easy to overlook because it does not do anything visibly dramatic in summer. In winter, on a good year, its stems turn a clear red and orange against the dead leaves and grey sky. It is also one of the better berrying shrubs for late-summer birds. I include it mainly on inland and second-line jobs where the winter stem colour is a worthwhile bonus.

Wild privet (Ligustrum vulgare) is underused in mixed native hedgerows because people associate privet with the formal single-species garden hedge. In a native mix it behaves differently: it grows quickly in the first three years, helps close the hedge gaps while the slower species establish, and handles the coastal alluvium and modest salt exposure well. It is semi-evergreen, which means it provides year-round cover even in winter when hawthorn and blackthorn have dropped their leaves. On a seafront mix where field maple and hazel are reduced or excluded, wild privet picks up some of the slack as a filler.

Recommended proportions by hedge position.

The table below gives starting-point proportions for three typical CT14 hedge positions. These are not fixed ratios: the right mix also depends on what the client wants (more wildlife value, a faster close, more winter interest) and on what is available from the supplier in the planting season. As a starting point, though, they reflect what actually establishes on this ground.

Planting density, spacing and the CT14 establishment challenge.

For a mixed native hedge I plant three to five plants per metre in a staggered double row, with around 30 to 45 cm between plants within the row and 30 to 40 cm between the two rows. Three plants per metre produces a closed hedge in five to seven years. Five plants per metre produces one in three to four years and costs roughly 60 per cent more per metre of finished hedge.

On the coastal alluvium of lower Deal and Walmer, the soil is free-draining but low in organic matter. Mulching immediately after planting is not optional: a 7 to 10 cm layer of bark chip or wood chip along the entire hedge line, kept 5 cm clear of the stems, suppresses the competitive weeds that arrive fast on this ground (couch grass and creeping thistle are both common) and retains moisture through the first summer. Refresh the mulch annually for the first three years.

Watering in the first summer is the other non-negotiable. The planting window for bare-root whips is October to March, which means the plants spend six months establishing before they face their first summer on coastal ground. A thorough soak twice a week through any dry spell between June and September in year one, and monthly in year two if conditions are dry, keeps the establishment loss rate down on this ground.

For the planting technique itself, slit planting with a spade rather than digging individual holes is faster on CT14's compacting alluvium and causes less soil disturbance. Ashridge Nurseries, based in Somerset, produced a useful video guide to slit-planting a bare-root native country hedge: How to Plant a Bareroot Native Country Hedge (YouTube, Ashridge Nurseries). Recommended viewing if you are planting a long run yourself.

Conservation areas and established native hedgerows.

If your plot is inside one of Deal or Walmer's seven conservation areas, be aware that large stems in an established heritage hedgerow may need a section-211 notice before pruning. The hawthorn and blackthorn in a newly planted mixed hedge will not be close to the 75 mm stem threshold for many years, but an old hedgerow with mature trees grown up within it is a different matter. Full detail: Deal and Walmer conservation areas: what you can and cannot cut.

Before you plant: safety.

Where to see a good mixed native hedgerow in CT14.

The best examples in the Deal and Walmer area are on the Kingsdown cliff-top path between the village and the SSSI boundary. The hedgerows there have not been formally managed for some years and show what a naturally diversified native mix does without intervention: hawthorn, blackthorn, dog rose and elder, with wild privet along the more exposed sections. The field boundaries around Sholden and between Deal and Sandwich on the A258 corridor also show well-established native mixed hedgerows, though most are managed by farmers under countryside stewardship agreements rather than garden contractors.

Sources: Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 section 1; RHS guidance on native hedge planting and species selection; Woodland Trust native hedging guides; Natural England land classification data for CT14 coastal alluvium and shingle; Ashridge Nurseries native hedgerow planting guides (Somerset, UK); field notes from mixed-hedge planting jobs in Deal, Walmer and Kingsdown CT14.