Hedge in Church Lane

Ingrid Thorstad, who lives in Church Lane, has written the following about the work carried out recently to the hedge in Church Lane -

Hedges, hedges, what’s the fuss
To my mind the hedge in Church Lane had been a magnificent example despite the trees not being integrated. It used to look lovely with its grassy margin that was regularly cut alongside the rather wild hedge (see the photos on Google maps taken 2008). It looked good and yet would have provided shelter for a wide range of wildlife and most importantly it didn’t even occupy space that might otherwise be useful being, as it was, on a bank.
Hedgerows increase the opportunities for many forms of wildlife. More flowers and forage mean more bugs, which then mean more birds and other animals and better pollination of plants.

What happened to the hedge in Church Lane?
Unfortunately, it had been abandoned for many years as the AVDC stopped cutting the verges regularly and the PC hadn’t taken over. It was in a dreadful mess, so I was happy when I read in the September minutes of the PC that: The whole of Church Lane needs tidying up. The priority is clearing scrub and pruning hedges this autumn before the nesting season. But please note there was no suggestion that the whole hedge would be removed. Nor did anyone else I have spoken to seem to realise that the intention was to destroy it. However, the PC talked themselves into believing it was all low quality ‘scrub’ and went ahead. They had no intention of letting it grow back either and hoped the Heybrooks wouldn’t be planting a hedge because they preferred the open view to the church.

I was assured that I had been the only person to complain but I talked to a few people who lived nearby, and some dog walkers and I don’t think that is a fair assessment of what people actually thought. Rather it was too late to do anything, and most people want a quiet life. Some thought it would be growing back again, some realised it hadn’t been such a good idea once they thought about the birds. One person even mentioned the disadvantage of the lane now being open to the prevailing winds. One person remembered it as a place where children used to play and told how a group of conservationists had cut it back in the past

Aren’t there enough hedges around already?
I am sure there are lots of people in Chearsley who are aware of the importance of hedges to wildlife and have heard about the concern at the miles of hedgerowslost to the UK since the 1950s (estimated at 120,000 miles). So concerned were people that legislation was brought in 1997 requiring planning permission before removing hedges over 20 m. long between roads and fields. https://www.gov.uk/guidance/countryside-hedgerows-regulation-and-management and many hedges have been reinstated.

The pluses and minuses of the Best Kept Village competition
One of the reasons for eliminating the hedge might be connected to the wish to enter for the Best Kept Village competition and of course we all like a place that looks good. However, I found an interesting article from the Telegraph (2014) which decries the Best Kept Village competition because of its emphasis on being ‘neat and tidy’ which conservationists say unwittingly contributes to the decline of bees, butterflies, birds and other necessary wildlife. Ironically, the Best Kept Village sign illustrated in the article is actually the one used by Buckinghamshire! https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/earth/countryside/11023876/Best-kept-village-contests-blamed-for-decline-in-wildlife.html

I would like to thank everyone I have spoken to about the hedge as it made me feel less isolated though I still feel very sad.

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