Dan Wright Conservation

The instructions were to lay an overgrown, ill-managed Hawthorn and Blackthorn hedge to form a secure boundary between a 2 acre paddock and a main road. The overall hedge length laid was approximately 150 metres. These first pictures show the hedge in its original state, the original hedge height was around the 3 metre mark you can also see in the pictures a feature Oak and also a self seeded Ash tree. The hedge is approximately 15 years old.

It was decided that the hedge would be laid in a Midland (Bullock) style using natural stakes and top bindings. The stakes and bindings were coppiced from a local managed Silver Birch woodland as it was not possible to obtain the more commonly used Hazel.

The principles of Hedgelaying are very straight forward.By cutting through the main trunk of the tree; the pleach, leaving enough material enabling the hedge to be laid over and staked whilst also keeping the tree alive.Nowadays, the cutting process tends to be done by the use of a chainsaw, this method has one distinct advantage over the traditional method and that is speed. Next

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