We’re now well into August which is THE recommended time to give many hedges their final trim of the year. That’s true if the hedge in question is an evergreen such as Privet or Box and it’s also true of deciduous hedges such as Beech. The timing of Beech hedge trimming is particularly important. Because it’s deciduous (its leaves turn brown and die in early Winter) it should become a naked framework of bare branches over Winter…….which of course means that it should become somewhat ‘see-through’. Almost miraculously though Beech doesn’t do that if it’s trimmed at the right time! Instead it clings on to the coppery coloured dead leaves which helps protect privacy and can be a thing of beauty in their own right. Below are a couple of photographs of a Beech hedge I have maintained for several years. One of the photographs shows it in June after its early season trim. The other shows the same hedge in March having endured the ravages of another British Winter…..and yet it has still clung on to most of its foliage! The botanists have a technical term for this ability to hold on to dead leaves - they call it Marcescence. Not many plants have this trait but Beech does. It’s one of the many reasons Beech is such a popular choice for hedges.
Above: The Beech Hedge after its June trim. This particular customer likes the hedge to be trimmed twice per year though it's the August trim that is critical if it is to retain its leaves over Winter.
Above: The same hedge seen just a few months earlier in mid March. Notice how well it has retained its leaves - in part because it was correctly trimmed the previous August.