As the deadline for hedge cutting approaches, Hedgerows Ireland has appealed to landowners to avoid heavy mulching heads for hedge maintenance.

Cutting hedgerows between March 1 and August 31 is prohibited, except where overgrowth poses a road safety hazard.

Hedgerows Ireland has said it is concerned about a "growing trend for reducing the height and width of mature hedgerows with the use of heavy mulching heads on track machines".

Alan Moore, the secretary of the group, believes this practice is being partially driven by the burning ban for all green vegetation which came into force in November 2023.

"The problem with this method is that it leaves a very rough finish, but far more importantly it can have a very seriously negative effect on hedge health with sometimes permanent damage to the integrity of the bushes," he said.

Hedgerow

According to Moore, "the mulching head causes shattering and splitting of stems allowing disease and rot to enter with significant risk of plant death and a resulting poor quality hedge".

"This has knock-on effects on the farm, the wider landscape and a huge negative impact on wildlife.

"They provide significant protection against flooding as well as a range of other services: shelter, shade, water quality, disease and pest control and major carbon storage," he added.

Moore said the organisation is lobbying for better farm payment incentives in the next Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) to encourage more sustainable and less intensive hedge management practices going forward.

While Hedgerows Ireland notes that "every hedge is different and one size doesn't fit all", it has offered some guidelines to landowners when it comes to hedge management:

For some of your hedges, trim annually to an 'A' shape with a wide base (which allows sunlight in to thicken the growth) and increase the cutting height by about 10cm each year. This helps promote hedge health and prevents hedges from deteriorating through repeat cutting at the growth point;
Leave intermittent bushes to grow into trees as this will allow flowers and berries to grow, as well as providing necessary perches for birds;
Try leaving some of your hedges uncut, (or side cut only) for up to three years on a rotation to allow flowers, fruit, berries and nuts to grow;
·Allow some hedges to mature without cutting where extra height is of benefit for shade or screening. Side cutting these may be needed for electric fences;
Leave old/ancient hedges uncut, or side trimmed only, due to their heritage and biodiversity value;
Roadside hedges will require annual cutting on the side facing the roadway;
'Gappy hedges' can be rejuvenated by coppicing and replanting the gaps, or by hedge laying. Hedgerows Ireland said as these are "quite drastic measures", especially coppicing, it recommends no more than 5% of hedges on your farm should be managed this way in any one year to avoid major habitat loss;
Avoid heavy mulching heads for hedge maintenance;
Try to avoid fertiliser and pesticide drift as both are very damaging to hedge life and are wasteful of resources;
If possible delay some of your hedge cutting from the autumn till later in the winter to allow wildlife to feed on berries and nuts in the so-called ‘hungry’ months.