21/05/2026
Hedges; laying, transplanting, and coppicing.
I sometimes think that hedge's days are numbered. I've never seen the attack on hedges there has been this last year. Brutal hacking, flailing or just stumping them out. Getting in the way of bigger and bigger machinery, too untidy, no productive value.
We forget though, that hedges in Ireland are mostly a human-made construct..lots grown to parcel land into taxable plots in the 17th and 18th centuries rather than the common land we had beforehand.
However, they were used to define townlands so some are ancient. And they inadvertently became the first type of agroforestry, combining trees with livestock. But their greatest benefit is that in many places, they are the last refuge of nature. Strips of native woodland within a sea of ryegrass.
Maybe a new type of agriculture is emerging where we plant blocks of woodland like is pioneering. Maybe we need to think differently rather than cling on to some idea of 'how things used to be'.
Here we had an overgrown, mostly blackthorn hedge, laid back in February.. hazel stakes to bind from an old hazel coppice nearby, woven together with spare, donated orange willow.
Cutting the heavy growth and laying took a day; gathering hazel, pointing and cutting to size plus collecting willow the same; then placing stakes and weaving probably about a day. A lot of work but is now stock proof, better for nesting birds and stimulated serious regrowth already.
We also wanted to make a new entrance but some hazel and spindle were in the way. So we cut them hard and transplanted. They have taken well and already regrowing (photo 11,12,13).
So before just hacking them to bits, there are other ways hedges can be managed, moved, or cut to still have value for us and nature.
