Purple/Copper Beech (Fagus sylvatica ‘Atropurpurea’) Bare Root
Price range: €4.50 through €20.00 inc VAT
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AVAILABLE OCTOBER TO APRIL
Latin Name: Fagus sylvatica purpurea
Common Name: Purple Beech or Copper Beech
Origin: Europe, western and eastern Asia and eastern North America.
Hardiness: Hardy down to around -15 degrees.
Growth: 30-60cm (1-2 foot) per year
Sun: Full sun or partial shade
AVAILABLE OCTOBER TO APRIL
Latin Name: Fagus sylvatica purpurea
Common Name: Purple Beech or Copper Beech
Origin: Europe, western and eastern Asia and eastern North America.
Hardiness: Hardy down to around -15 degrees.
Growth: 30-60cm (1-2 foot) per year
Sun: Full sun or partial shade
Exposure/Position: Beech do not like very wet soils and are not really suitable for coastal hedges as they dislike the salt spray in the wind. They also aren’t suitable for very dry or hot locations.
Soil: Moist but well drained soils. If your soil is very sandy and often dries out in the Summer, you may wish to add compost or manure to the hole or trench when planting to help retain moisture.
Moisture: Medium. Once it is established, this plant is likely to only require watering during drier periods.
Habit: Native to the UK, Beech hedge plants are renowned for their attractive, dense foliage that turns to a gorgeous coppery colour during autumn and winter months. Beech is a versatile hedging plant; it can be maintained at any size from around as small as 60cm up to many metres high, depending on your requirements.
Foliage: Semi-Evergreen. Leaves are retained throughout the Winter and turn an interesting copper colour, classing beech hedges as semi evergreen for providing some cover during the Winter months.
Maintenance: Low. Beech hedges are easy to maintain. Can be pruned with hedge trimmers and generally only require one prune per year.
Feed: Regularly once a fortnight with a balanced fertilizer between May to October (link here to sundries and options)
How many plants do I need?
40-60cm: 5 plants per metre
60-80cm: 5 plants per metre
80-100cm: 5 plants per metre
100-125cm: 4 plants per metre
125-150cm: 4 plants per metre
150-175cm: 3 plants per metre
Planting
These are field grown plants, lifted during the dormant season (normally November-April) and delivered ready for planting without any soil on the roots. The most cost-effective way to plant a new hedge.
Purple Beech, or Copper Beech, never gets boring. When the leaves of Purple Beech hedging first emerge, some plants look much greener than others. They will all quickly darken to various shades of purple within a week or two. Purple Beech hedge plants make a vibrant backdrop to any garden or landscaping project, whether you want to plant a boundary hedge for privacy or simply some colourful foliage to compliment your flowers.
We are often asked this question – from a horticultural point of view the very best time to plant almost all Beech hedge plants (especially bare roots and root balls) is in late Autumn or early Winter.
At this time of year, the plants are becoming dormant for the Winter and so transplant well, and the soil temperature is still comparatively warm meaning that the plants will begin to make new roots long before the new leaves and dry Spring weather arrive giving the new hedge a head start.
This doesn’t mean that you can’t plant Beech hedge plants at any other time of year, especially if you are using potted plants – here is a quick guide to the seasons for different types of Beech hedging plants:
Bare root plants – November to April: These are delivered to you straight from the growing fields with all the soil shaken off and ready for planting, they should be planted within a few days of delivery. Bare root plants are available from November until April which is the correct time for planting.
Root Ball plants – October to April: These are older bushier plants grown in the soil for longer and sent to you with the soil and immediate root system wrapped in hessian mesh (which should be left on when planting). The season for these plants is slightly longer from mid-October until late April.
Pot grown plants– All Year Round: These are grown and delivered in their pots, because there is no root disturbance you can plant them anytime, 12 months a year. They may look a little more expensive, but these plants will often catch up larger bare root plants within a season or two.
Instant hedging plants– All Year Round: These are also available all year so like the potted plants there is no seasonality and they may be planted at anytime for an instant Beech hedge.
Aftercare
Once established, Purple Beech hedge plants will grow quickly at 30-60cm per year and are easy to maintain with a trim once a year in late summer to keep them tidy. This will also improve leaf retention on the plants in winter. For a manicured and sharp look, you could trim twice: once in late May and again in late summer.
The best time for trimming Beech hedges is in late summer, ideally in August. By trimming at this time of year the hedge will respond by retaining its leaves through the Winter giving the effective year-round screen that is often sought from this species.
For a really sharp ‘show garden’ hedge you can trim more frequently and you will be rewarded with a very fine looking dense hedge but it important to check for nesting birds before trimming between the end of March and the end of July.
When trimming a Beech (or any other hedge) we would always recommend tapering the sides a little so that the base of the hedge is slightly wider than the top. This way daylight will always reach the lower parts of the hedge keeping the growth dense and bushy all the way up and avoiding unsightly gaps at the base.
