Hedge laying

Hedge laying or Hedgelaying is a country skill practised in the United Kingdom and Ireland, as well as a few places overseas. Creating and maintaining hedges provides

The theory behind laying a hedge is easy. The practice is much harder, requiring skill and experience. The aim is to reduce the thickness of the upright stems of the hedgerow trees by cutting away the wood on one side of the stem and in line with the course of the hedge. This being done, each remaining stem is laid down towards the horizontal, along the length of the hedge.

A stem which has been (or is to be) laid down in this manner is known as a "pleacher". A section of bark and some sapwood must be left connecting a pleacher to its roots in order to keep the pleacher alive—knowing how much is one part of the art of hedgelaying. The angle at which the pleach or pleacher is laid is a factor in the "build" of a hedge - hedges are built to a height according to what purpose they are intended for. The height and condition of the trimmed stool ("stobbin" and other local names apply) is vital as this is where the strongest new growth will come from. In time the pleaches (pleachers) will die but by then a new stem should have grown, from the stool, from ground level, which replaces the laid one (pleach). This process takes from eight to fifteen years, after which, if the hedge has not been trimmed, the hedgelaying process can be repeated. Hedges can be trimmed for many years after laying before allowing the top to grow to a sufficient height to lay again.

Smaller shoots branching off the pleachers and upright stems too small to be used as pleachers are known as "brash" or "brush" and in most styles of laying the brash will be partly removed and partly woven between the pleachers to add cohesiveness to the finished hedge.

At regular intervals upright stakes are placed along the line of the hedge. These stakes give the finished hedge its final strength. A fancy effect is achieved by binding the uprights with such things as hazel whips woven around the tops of the stakes. The woven whips are known as "binders" or "heatherings" and can also be of birch, ash, willow etc. In fact, these can be of any green wood which will hold the stakes and tops of the pleachers down securely. The stakes and binders used in hedgelaying when properly used provide strength and stability to the hedge. Binders are not applied simply for visual effect although in competitive hedgelaying, the appearance of the binders is often one criterion for scoring the work.

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