Tag: hedgerows

First walk for months! Part 1

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date July 4, 2020
3 Comments on First walk for months! Part 1

After not being allowed out of our own property because of the coronavirus once we heard I was allowed a little freedom we immediately went out for a walk around the village. We set off down our lane which goes through the village and soon turned left into Well Lane where we soon found the footpath we were after.

We were delighted to see a puddle, the first we had seen for weeks.

It was good to see that Mother Nature has continued her good work during lock down and we enjoyed seeing wildflowers, grasses and seeds on trees. This earl stretch of our walk took us along an ancient drovers’ road with hedges both sides. Occasional glimpses though gaps show crops growing sadly regularly covered in chemical sprays. We were to discover the bad effects of this later on our walk.

Sadly there were signs that plants were suffering from the long spell of hot dry weather.

After walking for half an hour or so we reached an old beautiful manor house where our path turned at right angles skirting the lake. Alongside the lake was a beautiful extremely wildlife friendly wide verge of wild flowers with annuals added for extra insect food. Below is a short gallery of photos taken of this feature. As usual click on the first photo then navigate using the arrows. Enjoy.

After enjoying the wildlife border and its wildlife we walked on a little way to a place where three fields met and stopped for a break. (See part 2)

Tags country walks, countryside, hedgerows, Shropshire, South Shropshire, wildflower meadows, wildflowers, wildlife

countryside hedgerows pathways trees Wales wildlife

A short walk along an Anglesey Hedgerow

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date April 24, 2020

About 18 months ago we spent a family holiday on the isle of Anglesey, spending some of our time seeking out ancient sites.

We walked along a young native hedge, planted by Cadwy in the last few years, along a gravel path that led us towards the wonderful prehistoric burial mound, Bryn Celli Ddu.

Some shrub species were flowering well but we were also fascinated by the number of wildflowers already established and growing happily in the new hedge’s shade.

The main hedging species was Hawthorn which was interspersed with Gorse and Elder punctuated by taller trees such as Damsons, Sycamores and Field Maples. even the odd Oak sapling was trying its luck beneath the hedge.

Flowering perennials and even a bulb species have colonised the shaded area beneath the leaf canopy of the hedge and the accompanying trees. We spotted Herb Robert, Celandine, Bluebell, Daisy, Vetch, Primrose, Lady’s Smock, Germander Speedwell and Dandelion.

Even in shady places plants found it to their liking. Ferns enjoyed the shade at the very centre of the hedge and ivy clambered over he stone built wall where the hedge ends.

Insects and invertebrates move in as the number of plant species increase and that leads to predators including other insects, birds and mammals.

The delights of Dandelion and its “blowing clock” were experienced by our granddaughter Arabella after Jude shared its magic.

Success!

Tags Anglesey, footpaths, hedgerows, hedges, trees and shrubs, wild flowers

countryside hedgerows

Whites in a May hedge.

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date June 8, 2018

I love the frothiness of a May hedge when Hawthorn comes into flower, providing explosions of white blossom, while in front the white of Cow Parsley is a matching partner to it. The white of the Cow Parsley has a hint of green to it and it has open umbels of flowers atop wiry stems. A third white flowers joins them but looks less significant, the Greater Stitchwort, a neat little plant covered in white starlike blooms.

I want to share my set of photos with you, all taken within a few minutes on a short 10 metres stretch of lane.

While photographing the hedgerow plants, we noticed this old hedgeline with a few old Hawthorns remaining still flowering profusely alongside the ruins of farm buildings.

Tags hawthorn, hedgerows, hedges, Powis, Powys, wildflowers

allotments autumn community gardening conservation fruit and veg garden wildlife gardening grow your own hedgerows natural pest control spring bulbs trees wildlife

The Big Planting – a new hedge and more bulbs for the allotments.

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date November 21, 2013
3 Comments on The Big Planting – a new hedge and more bulbs for the allotments.

In mid-November we held another working party on our allotment site, Bowbrook Allotment Community. This will be the last one this year and our aim was to plant a new hedge along the bare green fence that serves as the boundary to our site extension. We hoped also to plant the thousands of bulbs donated by our members. The green security fencing looks so bare at the moment so we can’t wait for our new hedge to hide it.

Recently we have been trying to involve whole families in our working parties and we hoped some youngsters would turn up to our hedge planting day as it was a rare opportunity for them. These days few children get the chance to plant a native tree.

We were awarded a pack of 460 native trees to plant by the Woodland Trust and had been given others by members and locals so we had well over 500 to plant. They were seedlings of hawthorn, blackthorn, hazel, rowan, birch, oak and all about 18 inches tall. We had guelder rose, dogwood and dogroses to add from elsewhere on the site. The Woodland Trust were able to give many sites like ours packs of trees because of the generosity of Biffa, Ikea and Nicky’s.

The trees, canes and tubes arrived at our house a few days before and the boxes were mighty heavy to deliver up to the lotties.

The day before the working party we mixed the plants up to make sure the planting looked random and natural. We placed a selection of little trees, canes and protection tubing alongside each section of hedge ready for a quick start in the morning.

With heads down and bottoms up Pete and I busily made our way along the stretch of fencing – we did need some time out around noon to straighten out, rest our backs and refresh ourselves with coffee and biscuits.

Twenty five members of all ages turned up to help us plant our new hedge including children, their parents and grandparents. Several were started way before our planned starting time. It was heartening to see them all sharing the experience together. We were amazed how the children all managed to find little creatures as they busily planted away, such as worms, beetles, slugs and spiders. Little hands carefully held them like precious jewels as they were all studied in great detail.

Jude, our community secretary and my “better half”, caught up on all the children’s news since we last met with the two little girls from our neighbouring plot. She heard all about the birthday party they held on the allotments using the picnic benches under the old oak tree and enjoyed following the trail and doing the quizzes with their friends.

Three generations, Syd, his daughter and granddaughters, helped each other to plant the little plants, but progress was slowed every time a mini-beast was discovered as granddad had to move them to safety, even a big slug!

Within half an hour of our ten o’clock start members were heads down hard at work along the whole length of fence.

Below Margaret is enjoying her first ever Bowbrook Allotment Community working party having started on her plot in the spring, while close by Anne and Charlie work in top gear to get as much done as possible before they have to go elsewhere for a family gathering in the afternoon.

The day started off chilly but before the end of the morning jackets were discarded and hung up on the fence. Sherlie and Pete in the photo below had been hard at work since 8:30 so straightening up afterwards was a bit of a struggle.

There were some stunning wellies on display.

Amazingly all the plants were snug in their new homes within an hour and a half. It goes without saying that we had earned our lunch break. The children went off at lunchtime as they all had other activities to attend in the afternoon such as dance lessons. We hoped they were not too tired to enjoy their afternoon activities. Those who stayed for the afternoon creaked more than a little when they returned to new tasks.

After a good rest with chatter and laughter we moved on to plant thousands of bulbs. Tulips, Daffodils, Muscari, Alliums, Camassias, Crocus, Iris and Fritillaries. We already have planted thousands of flowering bulbs, both spring and summer flowering over the four autumns we have been in existence. This year we intended to add to those already in the two orchards, the car park borders and under the mature oak and sycamore trees. In late winter and early spring these flowering bulbs will appear to brighten us up and provide our pollinator friends and our natural pest controllers with some vital nutrition.

To finish the day off a few of us stayed to move some hedging plants from elsewhere on the site.

A busy, successful and most fruitful day, which displayed just what a true community of gardeners can achieve by working together. We hope these activity days help to ensure we encourage and nurture interest in our naturalists and gardeners of the future.

Tags allotments, autumn, community gardening, fruit and vegetable growing, garden wildlife, gardening, grown your own, hedgerows, hedges, insects, organic gardening, voluntary working parties, Woodland Trust

autumn birds garden wildlife hedgerows migration

The Little Edible Hedge

When we were visiting my mother recently I was amazed to see just how much food for wildlife the old hedge alongside her back garden was presenting to the mammals and birds and of course the odd late flying butterfly and wasp. This stretch of hedge was originally an old field boundary and it illustrates just how much damage to Mother Nature’s larder the destruction of our hedges by intensive style agriculture actually causes. Here we have a 20 yard stretch of mixed natives with an odd cultivated plant creeping in from the garden that is a veritable larder for all sorts of wildlife.

Think of hedgerow food for wildlife and the first fruit to come to mind will be the Bramble or Blackberry. This may be simply because we enjoy a tasty nibble of these glossy black gems ourselves. We might also think of Roses with their red fruit following on from their beautiful pink or white flowers. As children we may remember them as natural itching powder – remember the effects of popping a crushed hip down a friend’s jumper? Admit it! Humans have also long collected the hips of the wild roses to produce Rose Hip Syrup.

Rose Hips have long been enjoyed by humans as well as wildlife, being used for jams, jellies, marmalades, wine and tisanes. More recently it has been appreciated for its medicinal benefits in relation to alleviating the effects of arthritis, gradually displacing glucosamine. Our pets also appreciate them as apparently they are given to chinchillas and guinea pigs as a treat.

A couple of hedge row fruits are also favourites of foragers, the Sloe and the Crab Apple as we readily turn these into tasty winter warmers Sloe Gin and Crab Apple Jelly. In this little length of hedge we found a wild crab and a cultivated crab growing a few feet away from each other. Our birds and mammals probably view them as equally important sources of winter nutrition. They will not be concerned that one has been planted to delight my mother with its spring blossom and red autumn fruits.

2013 10 18_4353

One important food source for wildlife is a little black berry that clumps together in spheres but this will not be until later on in the winter. For now the Ivy is still in flower and these tiny green florets are just starting to become berries. The Ivy plant is a vital for wildlife throughout the whole year. It provides shelter for all sorts of creatures from the tiniest insect to the plump Wood Pigeons, nest sites for birds such as Wrens, Blackbirds, Song Thrush and Robins and again the Wood Pigeon. In winter the Ivy provides warmth and secret hiding places for all sorts of creatures.

Less useful for wildlife are the cultivated plants that make their way into the hedge but the local Blackbird population will not turn their beaks up at the tiny long tear drop berries of the Berberis.

In contrast the deep red berries hanging in full bunches on the Hawthorns will be appreciated by many birds both residents and winter migrants. Once the Redwings and Fieldfares arrive on the back of the cold wet storms of autumn they will soon disappear.

The hawthorn berries have a place to play in human lives as well as wildlife, perhaps not yet seen as important as rose hip but it is being researched at the moment in relation to heart functions. For centuries it has been a part of the cuisine in China. Interestingly the name haw, which is now used to mean the berries, was originally a name meaning “hedge”.

So this short section of hedge of native shrubs mixed with the odd garden specimen will soon become the favourite restaurant for our avian neighbours.

Tags birds, garden wildlife, gardening, hedgerows, hedges, wildlife, winter migrants

birds conservation landscapes Shropshire trees wildlife

Hedgerow Maintenance – the good, the bad and the downright ugly.

Post author By greenbenchramblings
Post date March 11, 2013
14 Comments on Hedgerow Maintenance – the good, the bad and the downright ugly.

Driving around the countryside around our home in Shropshire we are struck at the difference between the worst and the best examples of hedgerow maintenance. Some are beautifully trimmed providing stock proof boundaries which benefit and encourage wildlife. The best examples of these are those that are “layered” as these remain dense in growth and provide homes, food, shelter and nest sites for all aspects of wildlife and often result in special habitats at the base of them full of wildflowers and accompanying wildlife. Insects, small mammals, birds, butterflies, bees and so much more of our wildlife can take advantage of this beautiful and skilful country craft. The trees of the hedgerow even those of reasonable girth can be trimmed and layered to create dense hedges. We found this beautiful length of hedge in a country lane a few miles from home.

I particularly like the artful way it has been thoughtfully finished with a flourish of woven hazel. This may be some sort of “signature” – the craftsman leaving his mark. Although artistic this probably strengthens the structure further by binding the top of the hedge tightly together. This hedger is such a craftsman that the angle of cut on the top of every stake is exactly the same.

A mix of shrubs and trees have been beautifully entwined. Even trees with trunks up to 12 inches thick have been split and layered. It is easy to see how impenetrable to stock these layered hedges are.

We were lucky to find this other hedge in the process of being layered so took some pics. It would have been even luckier if the hedge layer was still around for me to photograph him at work but it must have been his day off!

hedge 12

So those are good examples which are few and far between. The bad and ugly are sadly much more common now, hedges cut by machine, slashed to create ugliness. Some of the cutting blades on these machines seem blunt or perhaps inappropriate for the job in hand. Thicker branches get torn and slowly after a few years these hedges get thinner so are poor as stock proof barriers and even poorer wildlife habitats. Whole sections disappear and tend to be replaced with fencing so the wildlife benefit is lessened further. When the hedge cutter in his tractor cab comes across trees, whatever their size they are cut just the same. The old oak in the photos below had its lower branches hacked off.

The messy hedges that are left are a waste of time, too thin to keep stock in and of little use to wildlife and too thin to allow the usual wildflowers associated with a hedge’s shelter and shade to thrive.

What the answer is to improving hedgerow management in a wildlife friendly manner is difficult to come up with. The agricultural industry in the UK needs to rethink, look again at the idea of countryside stewardship and responsibilities towards the land.

Here endeth my major rant for 2013!