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Post by Ewan O'Rout? on May 25, 2009 19:45:22 GMT
What is the quickest way to lop the top portion from a privet hedge? It is currently standing about 9' tall and I want to bring it down to about 6'.
My battery hedge trimmers aren't up to the job and a small pair of secateurs are very slow?
Would hiring a petrol hedge trimmer do the business or would it be better with a wee chain saw?
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Post by Glen B Ogle on May 25, 2009 20:18:49 GMT
Chain saw's tend not to go through thinnish stuff very well - they do go through arms, legs, fingers without any problem at all though! They'll also leave a fairly messy cut edge as they tend to rip rather than cut thin bits - I had this problem with our willow trees and the chainsaw-on-a-pole (but as the cuts are 10 foot or so in the air no-one will notice).
How thick are the bits you need to cut through? If they're up to about 1 cm then a petrol hedge trimmer would be the best bet. If there's only the occasional thicker bit use a set of loppers as well - that's basically how our beech hedge was last done when we took it down a similar amount.
Whatever implement you choose I would strongly advise hiring or buying the correct safety gear.
Glen
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Post by Fi on May 25, 2009 22:40:16 GMT
I suppose it depends upon how big your hedge is, but, with the right hand tools, hedge trimming isn't that much of a chore. I don't /won't use any electrical pruning tools, because they are too prone to damage the plants they are being used on, plus they really are horribly noisy, whcih is only OK if you've got horribleneighbours to match. Instead we rely on bypass loppers instead. There's a lot more choice than those shown in the link and they take over when branches become too thick for secateurs, but too thin to require a saw. We've also got an anvil type lopper on extendable handles, which is perectly adequate for pruning twigs and thin branches up to about 12' high. Prices vary hugely between manufacturers, but we've always chosen the cheapest available, plus learned how to sharpen them when necessary. A pair of good old fashioned topiary shears almost complete the arsenal - they're perfect for giving any hedge a quick trim in mid-summer and would probably be quite adequate if ever you wanted to shear a sheep. *maintains a straight face* I've also got a set of bonsai trimming tools for, erm, trimming our bonsai.
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Post by lottielou on May 26, 2009 10:53:32 GMT
Ewan you did not mention the length of the hedge. We had a 3 metre high hedge which is bordering our property 65 meters long and 2 meters thick. The only way we cope with this is with our power hedge cutter which has 1 metre cutting capability. Ian has brought it down to a more manageable 2 metres height and 1.3 metres thick. The first year it did not look very pretty but since then it has greened up and is looking good. If the hedge is only a short length then you will probably be better off with Fi's Bonsai trimmers.(giggle)
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Post by Ewan O'Rout? on May 26, 2009 14:35:10 GMT
Loppers will deal easily with anything up to about 1.5 centimetres in diameter. The long handles mean that you can apply far more force than secateurs when cutting.
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