Kirsty Brown – Conservation Project Assistant
Following on from my last post about the natural history of hedgerows…
Hedgerow history and hedges as a natural resource
Hedgerows in the United Kingdom have been dated back to the Bronze Age, and many included banks and ditches. In the past, many hedgerow trees were very important for human use, and would often have been pollarded. Some ancient hand-drawn maps show individual trees within the boundaries, often at very regular intervals.
The wood from hedgerow trees was harvested for making poles, hurdles, broom handles and for use as fuel in fires. The term ‘by hook or by crook’ is thought to have originated from the historical allowance that tenant farmers and those with access to common land could take what they could reach with a shepherd’s crook or billhook, whilst the land owner owned the tree trunks.
The shapes of fields and hedge…
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Old School Garden 