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Hedgerow loss/gain: the position
Since World War II, hedgerows have been removed at a much faster rate than they have been planted. In some parts of the country 50% of hedgerows have gone, while others are so badly managed that their value to wildlife is much reduced.
Loss of hedgerows has been identified as a factor in the decline of many plant and animal species traditionally associated with farmland.
Reasons for hedge loss include changes in farming practices, development, damage caused by straw and stubble burning (banned since 1992), spray drift, neglect and indiscriminate trimming.
An Institute of Terrestrial Ecology (ITE) survey of hedgerow changes revealed that between 1984 and 1990 hedgerow length in England had declined by 20% and in Wales by 25%. While outright removal of hedgerows accounted for 9,500 km per year, almost half of the loss was a result of lack of management.
'Between 1990 and 1993, the rate of planting at 4,400 km per year exceeded the rate of removal... Unfortunately, there was a net decrease in hedgerow length of 18,000 km per annum'
Between 1990 and 1993, the removal of hedgerows lessened to about 3,600 km per year, and the rate of planting at 4,400 km per year exceeded the rate of removal. As a result of hedgerow incentive schemes, many farms had begun work to restore and manage hedgerows and other boundary features.
Unfortunately, there was a net decrease in hedgerow length of 18,000 km per annum in England and Wales during this period. This was at least partly due to a lack of management, leading to hedges being reclassified as lines of trees or gappy shrubs. These relict hedgerows, although registered as lost in the survey, are still of value to birds and other wildlife.
These losses of managed hedges appear to have been halted in the mid-1990s. This is welcome news. Although the net length of hedges now appears stable or possibly increasing, however, it is important to remember that newly-created or restored hedges may not have the same value in terms of wildlife, landscape and historical significance as long-established hedgerows.
Some hedgerows are so important that no amount of planting could replace them. The government has brought in legislation to protect hedgerows of key importance (currently in England and Wales only).