Whether you’ve a low-growing lavender or a tall laurel, tidying up your hedges after summer requires the right tools for the job.
So, which will you need?
“A key factor is to look at the weight of the product you’re potentially going to buy,” says Ryan Patterson, product manager at Husqvarna.
“If you’ve got a really high hedge, you don’t want something that’s going to be really heavy. Battery-powered tools at the moment are the biggest thing because they offer that opportunity to use a lighter product.”
Cordless trimmers, which use rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, are lighter and quieter than petrol equivalents and don’t restrict your range like corded versions. However, electric models don’t run out of juice and petrol models have a reputation for being able to slice through really thick, dense hedging with ease.
“It’s always worth investigating the run times (of battery models) and then taking into account how that will affect the weight of the battery,” says Patterson. More powerful batteries will be heavier.
“Also, make sure the blade is long enough,” he continues. “If you have a longer hedge you’re going to want a bigger blade, but if you’ve a small hedge a small blade will work really well.”
For lavender and other low-growing hedges
Lavender can be pruned back in late summer after flowering and, depending on the amount you have to cut, you might just need some good quality shears, or a grass trimmer might even do the job.
Make sure you don’t cut into old wood when you are pruning your lavender, and if you want a neat, tight, even finish you may have to get out your secateurs.
Battery-operated choices of hand-held shrub and grass shears are also suitable and are widely available from companies including Bosch, Flymo, Husqvarna, STIHL and EGO, providing easy-to-manage battery-operated double-bladed trimmers to make light work of smaller jobs.
Many come with interchangeable blades which allow you to trim lawn edges with the same machine.
Flymo 18V batteries are also part of the Power4All Alliance, which means they can be shared across all the Flymo, Bosch and Gardena cordless tools. Alternatively, stick with one brand, such as EGO, whose batteries are interchangeable within its own range of cordless tools.
For medium-sized hedges
Don’t go for an entry-level small hedge trimmer because it won’t be able to handle the job. Make sure you choose a dual-blade model so you can sweep in different directions, is long enough to tackle large areas and the battery has enough run time to complete the job, or you’ll have to take a significant break to recharge it.
When choosing your machine, consider those which have a rotating handle, which makes life easier when you are tackling the top of a hedge as well as the side of it.
Place tarpaulin at the base of the hedge to catch the clippings. You could also consider hedge trimmers that have a leaf catcher plate attachment, which will allow you to sweep leaves as you cut, guiding them in a specific direction, which is especially useful when you are doing the top and otherwise end up picking the cuttings out of the hedge, Patterson advises.
For a tall hedge
This is where telescopic tools come in handy, especially if you don’t want to climb up a ladder. They’re attached to a pole that allows you to raise the height of your hedge trimmer. Some poles have interchangeable attachments such as pruning saws for other jobs, too.
“You can get a lot of hedge trimmers that are not only telescopic so you can adjust the height quite easily, but also allow you to adjust the angle, so you can shape bigger hedges and angle them to at 90 degrees to allow you to cut the top of the hedge,” he says.
For topiary
If your topiary sculpture has gone out of shape, you may need to tidy it up and want more control, so you’ll need topiary shears. These have longer cutting blades and make shaping easier, especially for finishing off awkward corners and edges.
Take into consideration weight, handle comfort and the length of the blade before you buy. Some shaping shears are much lighter than others.
What about traditional, non-powered hand tools?
“Trimming, say, a low lavender hedge is much easier to do with a pair of hand shears,” says Leigh Hunt, RHS principal horticultural advisor. “There are some great ones available, some which have extended arms, so you don’t have to bend down so much.
“The key thing is that they are kept sharp. Use a sharpening tool before you do a lot of pruning.”
He says that gardeners may feel more of a connection, a sense of what they are doing, with traditional hand tools.
“When you close the blade you will feel that bit of resistance of the stems, which means you’re getting immediate feedback of where you are cutting. There’s much less chance of cutting off an important bit or scooping a lump out of your hedge.”
Using traditional hand tools is also better for the environment, he stresses.
“With hand tools, there is no petrol or electric – they are the most carbon-friendly way of trimming a hedge. And using them promotes exercise. It’s a great way of getting fit.”
Remember the birds
Watch out for any sign of birds in your hedge, as it’s an offence to intentionally damage or destroy active birds’ nests in the UK.
The RSPB recommends delaying hedge-trimming until after the main nesting season (March-September) but as long as no active nests are moved or damaged, you can legally cut vegetation year-round. So check your hedge for active nests before you start.
