SEVERAL readers wrote to me following my notes about hedges some weeks ago. Most raised follow-up questions relating to the repair and renovation of old hedges and problems of general cultivation but one letter broached the all-important subject of choosing the right hedging plants in the first place.

"I would like a floral hedge but articles like yours seem to talk only of boring lines of privet, laurel, conifers, or copper beech," says the writer. "How about some advice about flowering shrubs that I can plant as a hedge?"

Alas, there was no further detail about the purpose and position of such a hedge and these are the most important criteria. Some people choose for security, sometimes to keep animals and children inside the garden or to keep them out. Sometimes the reasons are purely ornamental but there's a world of difference between a neat hedge of lavender that offers no protection and a row of rosa rugosa that goes beyond privacy and threatens the life and limbs of passers-by.

The space available is also apt to be an extremely limiting factor. Choosing for the right height and spread, together with ease of control and maintenance, are probably the main reasons for planting privet and some of the other shrubs that attract my correspondent's scorn.

Floral hedges are more informal and sometimes require a great deal of control, often to the point of losing their blossom. Those with hawthorn hedges will know what I mean. Clip the hedge this year and lose next year's blossom. prune every year and forget the blossom altogether.

Nevertheless, let me offer some suggestions for floral hedges.

Escallonia must be high on the list for a tall, attractive, hedge. There are some 40 species, mostly evergreen, hardy, and ranging in height from 2-3m, with pretty white, pink or red flowers in summer. The best cultivars for hedging are probably C F Ball and Langleyensis and the macrantha hybrids.

Berberis julianae is a dense evergreen with strongly spiny stems and narrow leaves, coppery when young and set off handsomely by yellow, slightly-scented flowers in late spring and early summer, followed by blue-black fruits. It will reach 3m or so and form a tough barrier.

A number of other species of berberis also make good hedging plants but are not quite as vicious.

Cytisus scoparius (broom) produces flowers of cream, yellow, pink or crimson in April and May, 1-2m high. Deutzia will form a deciduous barrier with a profusion of pretty white or pink and white flowers in June and July. Forsythia x intermedia will make an informal deciduous hedge producing a mass of yellow flowers in spring, growing to 2-3m.

There are a number of excellent hedging fuchsias but great care must be taken to choose one that suits the position. Not everyone has a sheltered garden.

Lavender can be used as a dwarf hedge, flowering in July and producing a marvellous aroma from the leaves. Again there are lots of varieties to choose from. Rosemary is another in this bracket, with scented foliage and blue flowers in May and June.

Mahonia aquifollum (Oregon grape) has attractive evergreen leaves and golden flowers in February followed by violet berries from July onwards. It rarely exceeds 2m and does not need regular pruning. New Zealand daisy bushes grow to about 2m, sometimes more, but with an even wider spread. The white daisy-like flowers are produced in great profusion in July and August. It is a popular hedging choice for town gardens.

Potentillla "Elizabeth" grows to little more than 1m high and produces its yellow rose-like flowers all summer, from June to October. Prunus cerasifera (cherry plum) is vigorous and quickly grows to 3m or so with white flowers in spring. Rose species and varieties make good, informal hedges but generally need a lot of space, especially those varieties producing colourful hips in the autumn.

So there's a reasonably list to be going on with. There are, of course, many other flowering shrubs that will make attractive hedges