Another half off the hedge

kw: observations, photographs, local events

Last year I pruned the hedge on the side that overhung the sidewalk. This is the opening image of that post. While we trim the hedge about monthly during the 5-month growing season here, pruning is a (thankfully) rare event. It is a huge amount of work. We pruned for shape when we moved in, because the hedge had been trimmed wrongly in the past, and the top was wider than the bottom. A hedge is supposed to be a little wider at the bottom.

A year has passed, the pruned side is recovering nicely (see below), so we decided to prune the other side. I remember asking a horticulturist how resilient Privet is, and being told I could cut it to the ground if I liked, and it would grow back. It is a remarkably robust plant.

Here is one view of today's work. I'm about a third done on this side, with seventy feet to go.

I don't have a sidewalk to guide me on this side, so I'm cutting to about half a meter from the roots. I checked beforehand, and the original planting was done quite well, so the plants are in a very straight line. I can also sight along the top from time to time to guide my progress.

Pruning is not done with a hedge trimmer. There is too much need to cut thicker branches that the trimmer can't manage. I'm using a hand "snap cutter" and when needed, a lopper. You can see in this image that branches are cut off close to the plane that I hope to establish for the new growth.

Just to the left of the middle of this image you can see that the hedge is nearly opaque, while the rest is rather transparent. The growth on the other side has begun to fill back in, but there is quite a ways to go.

I have the cuttings bundled and ready to haul off. I took my time, putting cuttings in piles with a bit of care, so it was simply a matter of tying them about amidships for carrying.

While I could have spent more time and gotten more of this done, I find that the hand surgery I had a couple of years ago pains me after a couple of hours, so I take that for a warning signal and leave work for another day. Tomorrow is supposed to be like today, so I'll be able to get more done then.

This is the opposite side of the hedge, the one that was cut last year. Compare with the first picture; it is recovering well. Though the angle is different, it is easy to see that the cut ends don't show amid the new foliage.

In another year, this side ought to be well filled in, and the side I am cutting this year will look about like this. A word to the wise, though: fences are lots easier to maintain than hedges. If you don't have a hedge, don't get one!