www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0000xyt
Introduced by our very own Radio Star Phil Hart
BBC report on the National Hedgelaying competition
www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0000xyt Introduced by our very own Radio Star Phil Hart
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Bushey Down Farm, Droxford in Hampshire on Sunday October 21 st 2018
Well third time lucky, after two aborted attempts to attend this show, SEHLS finally made it. We were contacted early in 2018, to see if SEHLS wished to attend the event this year. With a hard track all the way to a live hedge which was just over 30 mtrs long, a nice size and good condition, it was an easy decision to make. Next step was to start the planning for the event and get some assistance with laying the hedge. The arrangements for the weekend were made, sorted out at the Bentley Wood Fair, and concluded in the Hare & Hounds pub in Cowfold after Training Day 1. The plan was for John, Frank and myself to do some hedge laying on the Saturday so that when the visitors turned up on Sunday, they could see what a finished hedge would look like. Unfortunately Frank’s van decided to break down on route so it left John and me to lay the first section of hedge in the bright and warm October sunshine. Our start was delayed as the farmer was having his first shoot of the season and the first drive was in the neighbouring field, so we were able to admire the surrounding countryside in the autumn sunshine. By late afternoon, John and I had a section of the hedge down, staked and bound, so we decided that it was a good time to leave. Sunday was an early start and the previous day’s warmth meant that it was a foggy drive to the site; thankfully I was able to give Frank a lift to the ploughing match, so we were back to full strength. With the tables set up with all the paperwork and display material, and a welcome cuppa drunk, the hedge was divided. John and I carried on from where we had left off on Saturday, Frank took the next cant the other side of the large tree in the middle, then Mike took the next one, and Gywn & Hans the last one. The hedge was just over 30mtrs in length so none of the cants was too long, which was deliberate so that we would have the time to talk to visitors and show them what we were doing. However, my wife Jo was doing a sterling job manning the table and explaining to the public what hedge laying was all about, I guess her knowledge must have been gleaned from listening to me go on about it. This was handy as it freed up Roger to help Gywn and Hans with their section of hedge which was all hazel. We had hardly got started and a couple of visiting hedge layers from Dorset turned up, it was good to see Russell & Mandy Woodman, and thanks for their help on the day. With such lovely weather, the crowds turned up; our hedge was close to the main arena and catering wagons. This combined with quite a few announcements on the PA about the hedge laying meant that most of the day there was a good crowd of people watching us working in the sun. By lunchtime most of the hedge was down and after some refreshment it was the staking and binding to do and tidying up; by mid-afternoon the hedge was finished. The comments we received from the public were all positive, saying how nice it was see a real craft, what a work of art it was and what a good job we had done, and the organisers seemed happy with what we had done. Hopefully we will have an invite back for 2019. Thankyou to John French, Frank Wright, Mike Mason, Roger Ferrand, Gywn Alford, Jo Burchell Collins and Hans Taylor for their help over the weekend. Pictures as always flic.kr/s/aHsmsAYai6 Chris Burchell Collins
We arrived at Bolney in the warm (really) morning for the first training day of the season, and were immediately impressed with Franks first hedge of the season. We had a mix of plant species and most of the cants were perfect for the trainees, with some more interesting sections further down the field to entertain the more experienced cutters.
Phil sorted out the trainees with a trainer, and we set off. There was not a huge amount of clearing out to be done, so we were able to launch in with the pleaching pretty quickly. Everyone was progressing well but we realised that we were missing a vital component, the stakes and binders. Yes a communication breakdown. Many thanks to Phil, Chris and especially Roberto for collecting them from the coppice site. Just as we started with popping the stakes in lunch was served, and a hearty and very meaty stew was produced. I was happily finishing off my binders when Alan Ashby arrived and presented me with a "present" which turned out to be a hooky stick, yes he insisted I tried to remove the stake tops traditionally with a billhook not a silky. Alan demonstrated the technique, which seemed straightforward. And just then Peter Tunks arrived with Phil Hart both keen to "advise" and "help". Well I have to say that it's a lot harder than you think, when it goes well it's fast and neat, but the bulk of my attempts did not follow this plan (much to the amusement of my audience), and I managed to cut through the top binder a couple of times (funny how easy they were to cut). Personally I think we will have problems with this, especially on tough chestnut stakes. Everyone managed to finish in pretty good time, and Peter Tunks decided to award a £5 prize for the best stake line, and this was awarded to Mike Mason's team of Andy Delves & Martin Cheesman Pictures as always flic.kr/s/aHskKvjuUS A great day of hedge laying at the ploughing match today, the weather held out (just), and it was a great day for hand tools only
Loads of (brave) people practicing heal removal with the axe/billhook. It was billed as a chainsaw free day, so sadly Clive was disqualified from the points because he fired up the old saw. Well done to the winners, sadly the score sheet got drenched, so we only have the final results and positions |
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