Turning over a new leaf: the humble hedge stages a remarkable comeback | Rural affairs | The Guardian
Nigel Adams is quoted in article
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Turning over a new leaf: the humble hedge stages a remarkable comeback | Rural affairs | The Guardian Nigel Adams is quoted in article
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More The Society was extremely well represented at the 2021 National Championships held at Rotherfield estate Alton Hampshire on 23 October 2021, with David Dunk taking the headlines , but all attending Society members acquitting themselves admirably. 19 members entered the competition, covering Midland , SOE, Dorset and Yorkshire styles. The hedge was a real challenge and varying in composition , species , age and density , hence organizers allowed 6 hours cutting time rather than the usual 5. All 6 hours were required, but all managed to finish in time with massive amount of brash being produced. Winners of their classes were :-
So congratulations to the winners and especially David Dunk , who had a beast of a hedge and some very strong competition in that class.We are extremely lucky to have such quality cutters as members of the Society, who give their time freely to the cause. All who took part did a good job, even those entering for the first time- the hedge had practically all the challenges it could have - Phil Hart described it as character building- he wasn't kidding ! Thanks must go to the Society members who judged , Kevin Agate ,Dave Truran and Mark Moore, along with the stewards Roger Taylor and Helene Threadgold - they travelled a long way , gave up their time and were very professional in their duties. Phil Hart towed the display caravan to the event and manned it with Gwyn Alford and others - a decent number of members of the public called by and hopefully that will lead to new trainee enquiries and more hedges. It was pleasing to see some of this year's trainees come along - hopefully they will have been inspired by what they saw. More photos can be found at :- https://photos.app.goo.gl/Se3oXMFni35JTD6F7 ( copy and paste into search bar) The next SEHLS event, Training Day 2, is again in Hampshire , at Petersfield on 6 November .If you have not already signed up please do so by emailing Frank Wright at [email protected] There is around 180 yards of nice double row hawthorn hedge to lay. Not much feedback from cutters , but as ever Ed Lovejoy's hedge was a challenge with an added ditch .
The photos tell most of the story. The show moves onto the National Hedge Laying Society Annual Championships at Alton on 23 October, with excellent representation from SEHLS in the SOE , Derby and Midland classes, along with judges and stewards being Society members. Phil and Gwyn are manning the display caravan. More information can be found at NHLS (hedgelaying.org.uk) An excellent day was had by around 25 cutters at a glorious site on top of the South Downs near Findon, having a 360 degree panoramic view over Long Furlong to Worthing in the South. The morning briefing included a minutes' silence in memory of Phill Piddell, who is sadly missed. He would have like the venue and hedge . The weather was extremely benign , even hot and the hedge was as Frank had promised - mixed planted hedge, where hand tools predominated. We were joined by 6 trainees Stewart, Jonathan, Nigel , Darren, Richard and Mike , who all put in a good shift under the close eye of trainers Alan, Tim , Roger, Frank, Dave and Marcus . This was an excellent introduction for the trainees, who will have to get used to harder hedges and less kind weather. A feast of a lunch was put on by Toby the land owner, which was welcome break and a chance to catch up with old friends. Great to see the dynamic duo of Kevin and John producing some classy work at the front of the site , while David Dunk put us all to shame with the sharpness of his axes. Tim brought along some holly beadles and managed to sell one ! Events like this don't just happen on their own , a quick thank you to :-
Matthew Beard 10.10.21 |
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March 2024
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