One of the projects we thoroughly enjoy working on is the Hedgerow Rejuvenation Project, delivered in partnership with Jersey Dairy and Jersey Trees for Life.
The project centers on coppicing existing hedgerows — a traditional land management technique that encourages vigorous regrowth and helps revitalise hedges that may have become overgrown, sparse, or structurally poor. Rather than starting from scratch with newly planted whips, coppicing works with what’s already there, harnessing the energy stored in established root systems to drive rapid, dense regeneration.
The results speak for themselves. This series of pictures follows one of the project’s hedgerows over the last year and a half, from freshly coppiced stems to nearly six feet of dense vegetation spanning from ground level right up to the canopy. That layered structure — with growth at every height — is exactly what makes a hedgerow so valuable to wildlife. It offers suitable habitat for a wide variety of flora, a host of insects, birds, and mammals, all within a much shorter timeframe than planting new whips alone could achieve.
It’s a wonderful reminder that sometimes the best thing we can do for nature is work with it rather than around it. We’re looking forward to seeing how this hedge continues to develop — and to the many more to come across the project. 🌱
