Regular Sheepdrove walkers may have noticed that we’re currently laying the long hedgerow that borders the chalk downland meadow stretching across Bockhampton Down. This substantial piece of conservation work is being carried out by local hedgelayer and woodsman Tom Fortune of Fortune & Sons.
Hedgelaying is a traditional craft that regenerates hedgerows by encouraging thicker, denser growth from the base. Over time, this creates a living, linear thicket that offers essential shelter and safe corridors for wildlife on the move.
Before the invention of barbed wire, hedges had to be stock-proof, and thousands of farm workers would spend months painstakingly managing them with slashers and axes. Today, hedgelaying keeps this heritage alive while delivering significant biodiversity benefits.
The hedge at Bockhampton Down has been laid in the South of England style. Hazel stakes and binders support the partially cut stems—known as pleachers—while they regrow. The result is an instant, bushy, sheltered habitat and “wild highway” for insects, birds, and small mammals, ultimately supporting our resident owls and birds of prey.
