Here’s our weekend… Partially entertaining at first then busy with a chainsaw on top of the hedge.
Here’s what I like to listen to whilst sitting on top of the cut off trunk 😉 …
Not a huge but quite overgrown leylandii hedge with narrow access to the back garden.
Hedge reduction and trim on both sides and top.
2 trailers worth of green waste.. there was a bit of a surprise when we started picking up cut,dead branches from inside it..
Turned out whoever trimmed that hedge in the past had tucked all the branches in the crown, so we had like double ther amount of waste to dispose off.
Nevertheless job done, client happy, even very happy..
Summer’s over but weather’s still very good and we’re certainly not slowing down!
In this garden we have:
Tidied up the borders, removed all the vegetation, roots, debris and old membrane. Layed down a new weed membrane and filled up these borders with beautiful white Cotswold stones.
Cut the hedges
Put up a new fence
All done in my favourite neighbourhood – Lower Earley / Reading.
Do you want to make sure your hedge is cut as it should be? Book a hedge cutting specialist @ Tidy Gardens
One simple thing when maintening your hedges as I mentioned some time earlier is a regular cut, but make sure you do it right !
It ain’t a rocket science, but so many people make that mistake.
Don’t cut your hedge in a reversed pyramid shape ! never.
Instead make a slight pyramid shape. That means cutting your hedge in a way that makes the bottom of it slightly wider than the top.
That will allow plenty of sun to get both to bottom and top of your hedge, making it all grow well from top to bottom.
Simples, right ? 😉
It was hot today, I did not take “before photos” sorry.
Here’s a couple of after photos.
Over the last few days we had great fun with some hedges. All of them overgrown and all of them conifers. Grow like mad so most probably leylandii hedges. 3 tall leylandii hedge reductions this week! How lucky we are 😮
Hedge reduction after photos below. Look at the amount of green waste these lovely plants deliver!
When it comes to hedge maintenance, regular hedge cutting / trimming is the single most important thing to do. Regular hedge trim will make your hedge compact and thick right from the bottom.
Why plant a hedge?
Hedge can be a perfect garden boundary, but the wrong one may give you troubles.
hedges provide shelter.
They dumpen noises, reduce strong winds
The obvious they give you privacy.
security but not all hedges. Thorny, prickly varieties like for example:
Common holly
Firethorn
Blackthorn
Barberry
Buckthorn
some hedging plants like photinia give you a beautiful seasonal change.
hedge supports wildlife. Birds love nesting in them as well as eating some berries.
unlike wooden fences, hedges won’t need replacing for many many years and they don’t require anything more than regular hedge cutting.
I can’t stress that too much.
Hedges need your commitment to regular hedge cutting / trimming.
All types of hedging need at least one hedge cut a year. Some varieties more than one.
A regular light prune is much better for you and your hedge then an occasional heavy cut.
Power tools do a quick job if done regularly. High and overgrown hedges often need costly specialist equipment or professional help
to get them back into shape.
You can avoid a lot of problems in future if you choose the right hedging plants for your boundary.
Hedge planting – the right choice.
The many benefits of growing hedges on your boundary depend on selecting the right plants for the situation. If you choose an unsuitable variety you could be faced with a range of problems, especially if the hedge grows too big. It will be difficult to trim and may cut out light to your garden or house.
Its roots could deprive other plants of water and nutrients, and even interfere with paths and buildings.
Oversize hedges will intrude on your garden space, and may cause problems with neighbours.
Oversize hedges can be costly and time consuming to cut back and most conifers, including Leyland and Lawson’s cypress, will not tolerate hard pruning.
If the hedge borders a road or path the local authority could get involved, and insist the hedge is cut back.
Luckily there is a wide range of plants available so it’s not difficult to achieve an attractive healthy hedge – one which will take only as much upkeep as you can manage, and create an attractive feature in your neighbourhood, not a bone of contention.
Growth rate
hedge cutting – how often
Size if unpruned
Foliage
Prickly?
Beech
xxx
Once
Large tree
D/LL
No
Berberis
xx
Once
Large shrub
E
Yes
Cherry laurel
xx
Once
Large shrub
E
No
Cotoneaster
xx
Once
Large shrub
E
No
Escallonia
xx
Twice
Large shrub
E
No
Firethorn
xx
Twice
Large shrub
E
Yes
Hawthorn
xxx
Twice
Small tree
D
Yes
Hazel
xxx
Once
Small tree
D
No
Holly
x
Once
Small tree
E
Yes
Hornbeam
xx
Once
Large tree
D/LL
No
Lawsons cypress
xx
Twice
Large tree
E Conifer
No
Leyland cypress
xxx
Twice
Large tree
E Conifer
No
Portugal laurel
x
Once
Large shrub
E
No
Privet
xx
Three
Large shrub
E
No
Rose
xx
Once
Large shrub
D
Yes
Western red cedar
xx
Twice
Large tree
E Conifer
No
Yew
x
Once
Large tree
E Conifer
No
Key:
Growth rate, for established plants
xxx – over 60cm/year
xx – 30-60cm/year
x – 15-30cm/year
Foliage:
D – deciduous
LL – dead leaves held in winter
E – evergreen
My favourite hedging plant has to be YEW ( taxus )
Classic choice but everlasting and makes an excellent hedge. Doesnt need that much hedge cutting either.
Tidy Gardens can trim/prune most of hedges, but if you are that lucky and have spectacular yew like on a picture above then DON’T call us. Call for a crane ! 🙂
Hard work and expertise My garden had become quite overgrown and I was looking for a gardening team who have all the powertools, and can take the waste away, and who also know their plants. Paul and team were the only ones I found who could do this and they did a wonderful job.
My paths have been cleaned, stumps ground, borders cleared of weeds and ivy and everything has been pruned.
Paul had some excellent ideas for other things we could do to improve the garden which I am sure I will take him up on very soon.
Caroline LArborfield
Landscaping, decking & path removal, new patio laid Paul and Eddie did a fantastic job of our back garden. We had a large area of uneven ground that we needed levelling, an old concrete path to pull up and a large old decking area to remove. All done in super quick time, and a whole new paving area neatly laid. We have no access to the back, so they brought everything through the garage and kitchen every day – it was all left neat and tidy every day. They filled huge skip and carried all the slabs, hardcore etc through by hand. Paul helped w… Read more
Richard MilnesTilehurst
Garden clearance and regular maintenance I discovered Paul only through his website and the many wonderful testimonials he has. Paul and his colleague came by to our house for a full garden clearance. We have a very large garden (front and back), and they worked tirelessly for over 5 hours. The garden is now beautiful, clean and tidy! Paul also seems to have extensive knowledge about plants, which is great! We have now booked Paul for our regular garden maintenance as well 🙂
Karthika VReading
Hedge well done Called Pawel who was quite flexible in terms of timings. Worked to my convenience.
Wanted them to tidy up a messy big hedge. Did a very neat job and delivered everything as promised. Pricing was very reasonable too.
I recommend him for similar jobs.
Ifthi MohamedReading
Fantastic!!! Highly recommend Thank you so much. I am over the moon with the sevice and professionalism from Paul at Tidy Gardens. The new fence has transformed my garden. Thank you 🙂
”
I’ll allow myself to include a couple of photos – before and after
Thank you for such a nice comment Danni
Paul
”
Few more photos here
Daniella GiamatteiReading
Tony June 2020. Impressive! Paul and his guys have all the right equipment and are reliable and efficient. I have lived with our very long hedge for over 40 years and it has never looked so good since Tidywork Gardens started maintaining it.
TonyWoodley
Garden Tidy Up Paul did an excellent job of giving our garden a good tidy up front, back and side! He came out on a Thursday and completed the work the following Tuesday. His work was beyond expectations and I would definitely recommend him.
Sarah BoultonReading
Excellent experienced people. Phoned Paul to quote for cutting a large conifer hedge in my daughters garden, he arrived on time and quoted a very fair price so we agreed a day to do the work. On the day he was prompt and set to work straight away and didn’t really stop for about 4 hours!! Everything was cleared away and he even used a blower on the lawn to remove the last pieces! Excellent bloke and would certainly use him again. Highly recommended.
Rita LockyerReading
Fencing work in Woodley. May 2014 Paul and his team recently replaced the fencing in both my own and a couple of neighbouring gardens. the work was carried out efficiently with attention to detail and at a competitive price. They ensured that the entire garden was tidy before finishing. I would recommend them without hesitation.
PaulWoodley
Great Job - Very good price for the hard work!
Paul came to give us a quote to clear and tidy up our garden. I could see that even through our messy garden, he could name the plants (invaded by the weeds!)
, but he could also tell us about various weeds, and what needed to be done (other gardeners did not have that approach unfortunately – showing your knowledge is key and this is the reason he got the job).
The garden is looking like I never seen it before. The house is ready to go on the market! Thank you Paul!
Denis PayenReading
May - 2019. Mick Pollek Awesome effort. Excellent work with great attention to detail
Mick PollekTidyGardensCaversham
Hedge trimming, May 2014 Paul was able to give us a competitive quote and complete the work shortly afterwards. I was delighted to come home to see the garden looking so much better and all the waste taken away.
LynReading
Fantastic service from Tidy Gardens
The Tidy Gardens/DGL team did a first class landscaping job for us. Edward worked incredibly hard throughout and Paul’s project management, attention to detail and design were really valuable, even when the scope of the project changed part way through.
I highly recommend them and will not hesitate to use them again for other garden projects in future!
Carly, Caversham, Reading, November 2013 Our little jungle had the local cats pretending to be tigers in the long grass but Paul managed to address this in a jiffy! He is punctual and professional- a pleasure to have around I can’t recommend him enough!
Carly MellinCaversham
Re felting shed Many thanks for a job well done and a fast reply sent a text on Sunday and job done on Monday afternoon thank you.
Mary McKinleyReading
Tim October 2021,
Communicated really well, did the job exactly as specified, and Paul was really accommodating at short notice, thanks a lot!
TimCaversham
Matt Hard working, friendly and a great job! I’d spent some time trying to get quotes for the removal of a huge blackberry bush and some work on an out of control honeysuckle bush but Pawel was the quickest to reply with a time to come and view and a very reasonable quote.
The job was organised very quickly too and in a few hours the huge amount of work was completed.
Would really recommend.
MattBinfield
Emer April 2023
Whitchurch on Thames
Paul and his team were brilliant at clearing my very overgrown garden and preparing it for spring. They worked extremely hard and I’m thrilled with the results. I’m delighted that they will be maintaining my garden throughout the summer and beyond.
EmerWhitchurch on Thame
Garden Makeover - March 2017 My garden has resemble a wasteland for several years. Paul and Eddie started work on it early on Monday morning and by Saturday afternoon they had transformed it into a lawn, neatly edged with brick paving, with a flower bed at the rear ready for new plants. They carried on working through terrible weather and left everything clean and tidy when they’d finished.
They are reliable, helpful, hard working and very polite and I can highly recommend them. I have already asked Paul to do more gardeni… Read more
Ann HoneybillLower Earley
Garden Tidy Up in Woodley. August 2014 I contacted Paul as my garden needed a good clean up. He was very efficient in responding to my emails, coming round to cost out the work and in getting the job done.
I would use Paul again and recommend him to anyone and everyone.
