Surveying Hedgerows

Hedgerow photo by Emily Nobbs 1/1
Hedgerows crisscross the Norfolk countryside. They add beauty to our landscape, provide corridors for wildlife to move along, and are vital wildlife habitats in their own right. Some may be many hundreds of years old, marking the position of ancient boundaries, others will have been planted at the time of the Enclosure Acts (1750 – 1860), and many will be of recent origin. Norfolk has lost nearly half of all its hedgerows; many grubbed out in the decades after the Second World War. Thankfully hedgerow removal is much rarer today now their wildlife and landscape value is recognised. Not only are hedgerows important for the plants that they may contain, but they are also a valuable habitat for many animals, including over 125 of the UK’s most threatened species.

The future role of hedgerows is no longer seen as just a way of enclosing fields. They have an important role to play in helping us to respond to climate change. These linear habitats provide protection to soil, livestock and property from extreme weather; help wildlife to move in relative safety from one habitat to another and they even help to lock up carbon.


Let’s hear it for hedges…

A 2km hedgerow has the potential to store between 1,200 to 1,600kg of carbon dioxide, and there are more than 475,000km of managed hedgerow in Britain. The average car generates this much carbon dioxide by travelling 6,000 miles.


When is a hedge a hedge?

Generally a hedgerow is defined as any line of trees or shrubs, over 1m talk and over 20m long, less than 5m wide at the base and with less than 30% of the hedgerow being gaps.

Hedges function to create boundaries, and most have been developed by farming activity, many as stock-proof barriers to control livestock. Hedgerows are also commonly planted to form boundaries both within and between gardens, and these are also important for wildlife.

Hedges provide not just one habitat for wildlife but many: from dark, twiggy interiors, sunny outside edges, to dead wood and deep piles of fallen leaves. These varied habitats, a bit like a woodland edge, support a huge diversity of wildlife.

To view the Norfolk Habitat Action Plan for Hedgerows click here.



Why not start a simple survey today?

Do not be daunted by the idea of a hedgerow survey. Start with a simple survey – no one is expecting you to survey all the hedgerow in your parish. Begin by making a few decisions:
 

1) Where is your survey area?

Mark your survey area on a map and then decide how much you are going to survey. You do not need to include every hedgerow, if you are working on your own you may just want to do a sample survey – surveying just one or two hedgerows.


2) Over what period of time are you going to carry out your hedgerow survey?

Do you want to carry out the survey over one year, or do you see it as more of a long-term project? The amount of time you can spend on the project will definitely influence how many hedgerows you can survey.

Hedgerows are usually surveyed between April and October, with June and July being the best months – especially if you are recording ground flora.


4) Which side of the hedge should you survey?

There is no wrong or right answer to this question. Ideally both sides of the hedge should be surveyed, but if this is not possible survey the side that has the easiest access. If the hedge is bordered on one side by a road, for health and safety reasons, you may wish to record the opposite side. The key thing to remember is to make a note of which side you surveyed.

 

Equipment

  • Ordnance Survey maps 1:25,000 and 1:10,000
  • Compass – to measure the direction the hedge side you survey is facing
  • Tape measure to measure survey area
  • 1m x 1m quadrat to record ground flora
  • Hand lens
  • Identification guides
  • Camera

Download Hedgrow Survey Forms here.

Hedgerow Survey Form (Survey Form Q)

Microsoft Excel spreadsheet   
Microsoft Word document       

Hedgerow Woody/Climbing Plant (Survey Form R)

Microsoft Excel spreadsheet
Microsoft Word document

Hedgerow Flowering Plant/Fern Survey Form (Survey Form S)

Microsoft Excel spreadsheet
Microsoft Word document

Please remember to send your completed survey forms to Norfolk Biodiversity Information Service (NBIS)– make your records count!

Norfolk Biodiversity Information Service
Environment, Transport and Development
County Hall
Martineau Lane
Norwich
Norfolk
NR1 2SG

Email: [email protected]
Website: NBIS

Get snap happy…

A digital camera can be quite useful during surveying either to record the character of the hedge, or to take photographs of an animal and plant that needs to be identified.

 
 

Need help identifying that mystery animal or plant?

Upload your photograph or email the photograph to [email protected].

 

Hedge your bets…

Take part in a workshop to help improve your plant and animal identification skills. Check out our event section for further information.