We decided to plant 100 metres of new hedge, to mask
the 2 metre high
deer fence
around our oak plantation,
each side of the entry gate. Alternate saplings of
hawthorn and blackthorn were planted, with regular
wild rose. A trench was dug in Sep 2006, planting in
Nov and Dec, and unforseen but necessary weeding in Spring
to Autumn 2007.
No photographs survive from the early hedge years, but the diary
tells more about the hard work involved.
Progress was slow and barely noticed until 2013, when
trimming was badly needed and the top only just reachable.
We had our 100 metre hedge!
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15 Oct.
Finished weeding new hedge in plantation.
17 Sep.
Finished weeding new hedge.
19 Jun.
Hoed the hedge again.
13 Jun.
Weeded the new hedge from outside the deerfence.
09 Jun.
Weeded all the new hedge. The single blackthorn we thought dead now has
little buds. Many of the wild roses have mature shoots.
16 May.
We de-weeded the new hedge on our knees, mainly a hand-job. Glyphosating
the grass bordering the hedge is working well after 3 weeks.
25 Apr.
Started weeding and glyphosating the new hedge, using a piece of plywood
to stop the solution touching the hawthorn/blackthorn leaves.
28 Dec.
Rosie planted 10 little ash trees in the hedge.
27 Dec.
Rosie planted 8 hop roots in new hedge. Hedge measured as being 103.5 metres
(113 yards), nicknamed the "hundred metre hedge"
22 Dec.
Completed adding berry mixture and so completed hedge. Hedge is about 120
yards, runs from posts 117 to 129 and 1 to 8. Climber berries added from
124 to 129 and 1 to 5. Must add more climber berries next September.
Digging, collecting transporting and planting for this new hedge took us
over 18 days work, nearly 100 man-hours.
20 Dec.
Finished planting 198 wild rose in the new hedge. Also planted half of
seed mixture of climbers and berries (see 20 Sep 06).
19 Dec.
Planted 135 wild rose between whips in new hedge.
18 Dec.
Completed planting whips as hedge, with 196 hawthorn and blackthorn over
120 yards and 20 fence sections, has taken 7 days with 2 people, and the
whips cost £140. Next plan to plant a wild rose (grown from seed)
between each whip.
17 Dec.
Extended hedge planting by 2 more fence sections, now planted 180 whips.
16 Dec.
Cold & clear. Continued planting hedge. Total now 157 whips.
15 Dec.
Moved 200 wild Rose plants from home to plant in new hedge. They were grown
from seed, in 5in pots, in 18 trays, and needed 3 trips in Land Rover.
(see 22 Oct 2005)
14 Dec.
Continued planting hedge, planted 35 whips across 3 sections of deer fence,
total now 120. Soil much drier.
13 Dec.
Finished planting the South side of the new hedge, total of 43 hawthorn and
43 blackthorn whips. Drier today. Have done 85 whips in 3 days.
12 Dec.
Planted another 15 hawthorn and 15 blackthorn whips along 3 more sections
of the West deer fence. Very muddy work. See 23 Nov.
24 Nov.
Moved 31 good housebricks to plantation to hold down mulch mats over hedge
whips. Years ago I knocked part of my neighbours wall down with my car,
he's now too old to rebuild the wall, so let us have the bricks.
23 Nov.
Planted about 18 hawthorn and 18 blackthorn along 3 sections of the West
deerfence. Cold and muddy work.
22 Nov.
Collected 100 Common Hawthorn Crataegus Monogyna and 100 Blackthorn
Prunus spinosa from the local garden centre. When the rain stopped,
we stored them on the field covered with soil (against the frost) and aim
to plant about 100 yards of hedge along the West deer fence. We used all 5
wheelbarrows!
17 Oct.
Potted 75 acorns, to be used in hedge next year.
30 Sep.
Finished filling in 80 metres of trench with topsoil. Decided to use
hawthorn and blackthorn whips, ordered 100 of each from Naked Cross.
28 Sep.
Filled 65 metres of trench with topsoil, ready for wild rose plants and
climbers. Hard work carrying much soil in buckets.
27 Sep.
Finished digging 80 metres of trench for a new hedge along the West deer
fence.
25 Sep.
10 more metres of ditch dug, another 15 to go. The earth is very dry and
hard.
24 Sep.
10 more metres of ditch, now 40 metres done. Moved earth to ditch area
ready to be used to plant climbers, wild rose (from home), and hawthorn
and blackthorn whips.
21 Sep.
Picked large number of hawthorn and blackthorn berries from field #4 for
new hedge. Ditch now 30 meters long for this hedge.
20 Sep.
Ditch now 20 meters long, 50 meters to go. Berry collection mixed with
earth ready to go in trench when finished.
19 Sep.
Started trench along West deer fence to take new hedge and climbers.
03 Sep.
Hoed 130 dogrose patches.
24 Aug.
Hoed 130 dogrose patches.
14 Aug.
Hoed 130 wild rose spaces.
06 Aug.
Hoed 130 spaces for wild rose around deer fence posts.
01 Aug.
Finished potting up 200 wild rose to 5" pots, to be planted next March.
31 Jul.
Potted up another 77 wild rose.
30 Jul.
Potted up 55 wild rose from 3" to 5" pots. These will be planted along
the deer fence around the plantation. They were picked as hips 10 months
ago from local hedges, and the seeds extracted.
16 Jul.
Cleared 129 areas of grass next to each deer fence post, ready to take
200 wild rose plants we have raised from seed at home.
29 Apr.
Herbicided 155 grass patches next to deer and nursery fence posts with
glyphosate. We want to plant climbers at these points supported by the
stock fencing, when the grass has died. At home we have 300 3" pots
containing wild rose and wild hop, growing well.
29 Oct.
We collect hop seeds growing in the West hedge, hope to raise them in pots
back home and return to the field.
22 Oct.
Scattered some
"stinking iris" berries from plants back home, also collected rosehips
from dog roses growing in the hedge line, also some sloes. We plan to
grow them on back home, and replant in the field next year.
26 Sep.
Found the following berries in the hedgerows: rosehips, blackberries,
sloes, elderberries.
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