Hedgerows

The importance of hedgerows

The first examples of managed hedgerows date back to the Bronze Age; they were used as a source of firewood, for shelter from rain and wind and to fence livestock.

Since then, they have been used to mark ownership boundaries and create natural borders. In today’s fast paced world, they are used to hide large housing developments and buffer noise pollution from roads and train tracks.

But they are so much more than this.

Hedgerows are the UK’s largest priority habitat. They support up to 80% of our woodland birds. Not only that, they also sustain over 2000 UK wildlife species by either providing shelter, food or ways to move throughout the countryside. It isn’t only wildlife that benefits from a healthy Hedgerow population, their role in the climate emergency is crucial. Not only do they prevent soil loss, reduce pollution, reduce flooding and regulate water supply, they also have a major role in reducing greenhouse gases by storing a large amounts of carbon. Every kilometre of hedgerow has the capacity to store 600 to 900 kg of carbon dioxide per year for up to 20 years!

The problem

Did you know, that we have lost around 118,000 miles of healthy hedgerows since 1950? This is around 50% of UK hedgerow cover. In line with this national decline, since the mid-20th century, the number of hedgerows in Gloucestershire has decreased at an alarming dates.

So why have our hedgerows declined so much?

• Intensification of agriculture: As farming practices became more industrialised, hedgerows were often removed to make way for larger fields and more efficient machinery. This shift towards monoculture farming and the expansion of arable land has resulted in fewer habitats for wildlife.
• Land drainage & field consolidation: Many hedgerows have been lost due to land drainage schemes and the merging of smaller fields into larger plots. These changes have made hedgerows less practical for modern farming methods, leading to their destruction in many areas.
• Urbanisation: As towns and cities in Gloucestershire expand, new roads, housing developments, and infrastructure projects increasingly encroach on green spaces, causing further loss and fragmentation of hedgerows.
• Lack of Maintenance: In some cases, the remaining hedgerows are neglected or poorly managed. Without regular care, they can become overgrown, lose their shape, or fail to regenerate, eventually disappearing altogether.

The cumulative effect has been a significant reduction in Gloucestershire’s hedgerow network, leaving many areas less biodiverse and less resilient to climate change and other environmental challenges.