Horticultural Influence

Alastair Beddall started his landscape contracting business in 1981, naming the company Practicality Brown, in favour of Lancelot ‘Capability’ Brown, the famous 18th Century landscape designer. Capability Brown designed some of Britain’s most spectacular park landscapes at historic homes such as Blenheim, Burghley House and Hampton Court. His designs can still be seen today, nearly three centuries later.

Company Development

During the 1980s, Practicality Brown (incorporated in 1987) worked on long term contracts for the Forestry Commission and was one of the first companies to develop tree clearance without burning. Pioneering whole tree chipping in the UK on a commercial scale in 1985, Practicality Brown have extensive experience of mechanised vegetation clearance, introducing Ahwi Mulchers in 1999 and mechanised Tree Shears in 2002.

By 1989 the company was also supplying semi mature trees and forest products to the landscape trade. In the late 1990s, Practicality Brown where instrumental in developing the Elveden Instant Hedge™ with the Elveden Estate in East Anglia. Together, they identified a need for a substantial, mature hedge up to 6ft high and planted species to grow for at least a four years before being sold in an ongoing programme.

Practicality Brown Today

Practicality Brown Ltd is an innovative, class-leading company, with divisions operating in the Landscape and Forestry Sectors. The Practicality Brown Difference:

• We are staffed by an experienced and dedicated team who give exemplary customer service and project satisfaction.
• We have taken advantage of constantly changing market conditions and trends, to position ourselves at the forefront of the landscape industry.
• Our extensive experience of large tree planting is coupled with a large fleet of tree moving machinery.
• Our unique Elveden Instant Hedge is the industry standard against which all other hedging plants are compared.
• Our tree clearance division operates UK wide, offering a fast and efficient service with a large fleet of no-burn tree clearance equipment.