David and I were the only volunteers to turn up last Thursday so we thought we'd tackle a short bit of hawthorn hedge on the Powderham reserve.
The trees had been been planted some years ago and were now tall enough to lay. They were not planted on a bank so strictly speaking it is not a Devon hedge but we applied the same techniques. It meant working very low to the ground and the most difficult part of the day was getting back up off our knees once we'd steeped the trees.
Firstly we cleared the brambles and reeds from around the trees. Then, using billhooks and handsaws, we steeped the trees. This meant cutting into the tree trunk as low as possible until only a portion of the bark and the cambium remained. It is very easy at this point to snap the tree off completely so it has to be done with care. It is important to lay uphill for the survival of the trees so we started at the highest point. Once the tree has been steeped we removed some of the branches and twigs sticking out so that it lay as close to the ground as possible.
This process is repeated until all the trees have been steeped. To make sure the hedge is solid and compact crooks can be cut from any branches that were not needed. Crooks are forked and can be hammered into the ground securing the hedge.
It appeared at first that this was going to be a prickly job as many of the trees were hawthorn or blackthorn and were covered in bramble. However, once the bramble had been cleared we found ash and hazel. The mix of trees is important to support biodiversity of Devon hedges.
For more information about Devon hedges see the Devon County Council webpage which as a comprehensive list of pdfs describing the process, the history, environmental reasons for and economics of hedgelaying.