FROM PERSONAL EXPERIENCE

I planted a row of pine trees to serve as a fence around one of my large fields of medicinal plants. To surround the entire area of 5,000 square meters I needed 500 seedlings, which I planted in late autumn when they were 50 centimeters high. Dependent upon the area, these trees should not grow more than two meters (six feet) high, which means they will have to be cut back every year. But since we use the green spring shoots in the pine bud syrup “Santasapina,” nothing is wasted and the trees need hardly any further pruning. Not only pine trees can be used for such a fence, but horn beam trees are equally suitable. Hawthorn hedges are popular, and arbor vitae (Thuja) are ideal as a natural fence in gardens, shutting out the neighbor’s prying eyes. A hedge fence is not only beautiful, it is beneficial. Almost everywhere it is a regulation that the trees be planted 60 centimeters (about 2 feet) from the boundary of one’s property, which means that about 1.2 meters of land are lost. But the benefits derived from the hedge far surpass this loss. Especially if you grow things organically the advantages cannot be minimized. A natural, growing border around the plantation is of definite benefit. The little creatures, above all birds, are the best voluntary garden helpers you could wish for, provided you make such a provision for their nesting and shelter.