Novice gardener needing help

[CarcerDun]

At the bottom of our garden is 6-8 foot piece of (our) land that separates us from a local park. We've lived here a year and are planning on rehauling this area when we can afford it. The area is full of brambles/ivy on the park side and various different hedges facing in.

The other day some little shit kicked his football over into our garden (fine we always hand them back) but he decided to force his way through the hedge into the garden to collect his ball. He choose the most vulnerable spot so has effectively left us with a hole.

I need to close this hole as we have a toddler who needs to be contained and also we now have free access between us and the park so not great for security. I can't spend much as we want to redo the whole lot in a few years. What's the cheapest most effective plants to go with? They need to be able to provide at least some barrier straight away... I was thinking dog roses at the back and something less thorny at the front for the toddler...

Thank you in advance for your help, I can post a picture of the spot if needed.

[QuerkyJo]

pyracanthas is very thorny. Lots of berries and quick growing.

[shovetheholly]

Pyracantha has lovely flowers and berries, as well as being dense and fast growing - great recommendation. Holly is a pretty effective deterrent. You can also get some gorgeous ornamental brambles that grow like crazy and have white stems in the winter. They are so ridiculously rampant that they give a kind of enchanted garden look. Less enchanting, however, are the scratches you get when trying to maintain them if you need them to behave. I guess in a hedge, though, you could dispense with some of that!

[QuerkyJo]

shovetheholly do you know what they are called, that sounds just what I am looking for

[shovetheholly]

I do indeed, they are Rubus cockburnianus and rubus thibetanus. I have the former, which grows like razor wire. I prefer the form of the latter, which (with careful pruning) can be grown in lovely arching clumps - just stunning over winter.

However, an even better bet might be Rubus biflorus, which has ornamental stems AND flowers AND fruit (not the most tasty of berries though).

You do need to chop them back HARD - I mean virtually down to the ground - in spring to avoid being overwhelmed.

[QuerkyJo]

Thank you

[CarcerDun]

These are all great, thank you! I might get a variety to keep the area a bit wild looking.

[Ifailed]

Why not go for Blackthorn? As it;s name suggests its thorny, and native to the UK. On the plus side you'll get berries after a while and can make your own sloe gin!

[CarcerDun]

Ha ha! Interestingly I have some blackthorn cuttings in the greenhouse that I am hoping will take! We bought Pyracanthus and something beginning with B. Looking good.

[guerre]

Leptospermum have lots of spines, but tend to be a bit more expensive in UK (possibly because they're ?Australian?)
Pyracantha grow well without any help, as does holly.
The spines on my blackthorn are a good 3 inches long, quite nasty.