Routine cuts done properly, on every species I work with.

What's included

• Top, sides and front face cut to your chosen height and width
• All arisings cleared from site and disposed of properly (chipped for reuse where it makes sense, or taken to the nearest Kent HWRC)
• Brush-down of the path, lawn or driveway underneath
• Six-week section-211 notice filed on your behalf if you're in Shepherdswell's conservation area and the hedge has any stems over 75mm at chest height
• Fixed price quoted in advance, no day-rate creep

Pricing

Most routine cuts in Shepherdswell fall in the £120 – £400 range depending on hedge length, height, and how much access I need. Fixed price after seeing photos and the postcode, no surprises on the day, no charge if the quote isn't accepted.

Timing by species

Native farmland hedgerows and formal village garden hedges want different cadences. A field-boundary hawthorn mix is usually cut once a year, outside nesting season; a formal garden hedge on a village plot generally wants two lighter cuts to hold a clean line through the growing season.

• Hawthorn, blackthorn, field maple, dogwood: winter only (September to February) to comply with nesting law; the reliable native mix on Shepherdswell's chalk field boundaries. Usually one cut a year on farmland hedges.
• Privet, Leylandii, thuja: fast-growing, twice a year (late spring and late summer) on village garden hedges.
• Yew: single late-August cut; happy with a hard clip once a year and resentful of more. Native to the North Downs chalk and holds a clean formal line for decades.
• Box: light trim twice a year where box blight and box tree moth pressure allow; otherwise a switch to a more resilient species is worth discussing.
• Holly, laurel: late summer; both bruise easily, so secateurs and loppers on visible faces over a hedge trimmer where time allows.

Farmland boundary work

A working field-boundary hedge is managed differently to a garden hedge, cut on a rotation that keeps it stock-proof and dense at the base rather than trimmed for looks alone, and priced by length rather than the standard garden rate. I check for active nests in any thick native hedgerow before cutting even outside the formal nesting window, since farmland birds like yellowhammer and linnet use these hedges around Coldred and Eythorne year-round.

What I don't do on cutting jobs

If a hedge needs more than a routine cut: it's overgrown, gappy, leaning, or has outgrown the position, that's a reduction job, not a cut. I tell you that at quote stage rather than do a botched cut and pretend it solved the problem.