Privet
This is one of the fastest-growing genera in this KB's hedging group, and the single biggest adjustment for a new owner is clipping frequency — two to three cuts through the growing season, not the single annual clip that suits slower hedges like yew, or it will quickly look overgrown and untidy.
Care
Tolerates a wide range of exposure, including fairly deep shade, which is part of why it's such a popular hedging choice.
Regular watering while establishing a new hedge; reasonably drought-tolerant once well rooted.
Adaptable to most soil types, including poor or chalky soil.
Clip two to three times through the growing season (typically late spring, midsummer, and early autumn) to keep a hedge dense and formal — this genus grows fast and quickly looks untidy if left too long between cuts.
A balanced feed in spring and again after the main clip. Privet is greedy and its roots strip the soil for a couple of metres around — which is also why a border alongside a privet hedge struggles, and why that border needs feeding too.
Hardwood cuttings after leaf fall are famously easy: lengths of the year's growth pushed into a spare piece of ground root almost without fail, which is how whole hedges used to be raised.
Month by month
Months change with the climate: in southern Italy tomatoes go out two months earlier than in England.
- MayFirst hedge clip of the season as growth gets underway. how ›
- JulySecond clip of the season to keep the hedge dense and formal through summer. how ›
- SeptemberFinal clip of the season before growth slows for autumn. how ›
Months based on climate: UK. Your choice stays on this device.
- MayFirst hedge clip of the season as growth gets underway. how ›
- JulySecond clip of the season to keep the hedge dense and formal through summer. how ›
- SeptemberFinal clip of the season before growth slows for autumn. how ›
Months based on climate: Northern Italy. Your choice stays on this device.
- AprilFirst hedge clip of the season as growth gets underway. how ›
- JulySecond clip of the season to keep the hedge dense and formal through summer. how ›
- SeptemberFinal clip of the season before growth slows for autumn. how ›
Months based on climate: Central Italy. Your choice stays on this device.
- AprilFirst hedge clip of the season as growth gets underway. how ›
- JulySecond clip of the season to keep the hedge dense and formal through summer. how ›
- OctoberFinal clip of the season before growth slows for autumn. how ›
Months based on climate: Southern Italy and islands. Your choice stays on this device.
Common problems
How to spot it. Fast regrowth making a freshly clipped hedge look scruffy again quickly.
What to do. Normal for this genus — it's one of the fastest-growing common hedging plants, and two to three clips a year (rather than the single annual clip that suits slower hedging genera) is what keeps it looking sharp.
How to spot it. Sudden dieback or death of sections of an established hedge, sometimes with white fungal growth under the bark at the base.
What to do. This genus is more susceptible than many other common hedging plants — remove and dispose of affected material, and avoid replanting the same spot with another susceptible species.
How to spot it. Thin, leafless lower sections on an older hedge.
What to do. Often from clipping the sides straight up-and-down rather than tapering slightly wider at the base — a gentle A-shaped taper lets more light reach the lower branches and helps prevent this over time.
Questions
Privet: is it hardy?
H4: Hardy through an average UK winter. It survives down to −10 °C.
Can it grow in a pot?
Can be grown in a large container, particularly as clipped topiary shapes, though it's overwhelmingly grown as a garden hedge in the ground.
Privet: when do you prune it?
Clip two to three times through the growing season (typically late spring, midsummer, and early autumn) to keep a hedge dense and formal — this genus grows fast and quickly looks untidy if left too long between cuts. In the calendar for UK, pruning falls in May, July, September.
Privet: when does it flower?
In the climate of UK it flowers in June–July.
When do you feed it?
A balanced feed in spring and again after the main clip. Privet is greedy and its roots strip the soil for a couple of metres around — which is also why a border alongside a privet hedge struggles, and why that border needs feeding too. Feeding months, UK: April, June.