Words from the Hedge

Words From the Hedge is a unique book: a passionate evocation of the history, beauty, and importance of our hedgerows by a craftsman with over twenty years’ experience – and the scars to prove it.

Hedges are as old as civilisation, as emblematic of the British countryside as chalk streams, hay meadows or oak trees and with as many regional variations as there are styles of traditional building. But whereas woods are protected and cherished as ‘the lungs of the land’, farmland hedges are too often taken for granted.

Not any more. In Words From the Hedge, the professional hedgelayer and coppicer Richard Negus takes us deep inside in this ancient world. He shows how these ribbons of thorn and barb are more than mere decoration or boundary markers: they are the countryside’s vital arteries, sustaining an astonishing diversity of plant and animal species, linking farms and villages, wildlife and people together. No hedge is ‘wild’, he reminds us; they are the product of human effort and skill – often over many generations – and require hands-on human intervention to thrive.

Richard Negus wields his pen with as much dexterity as he does his billhook and chainsaw. Along with detailed descriptions of his work, he gives memorable portraits of the birds, animals, plants and insects that are his daily companions. Robins, linnets, wrens, turtle doves, hedgehogs, shrews, voles, deer, foxes, beetles, aphids, mites – all have a part to play in the inner life of the hedge. And through his work, Richard uncovers a lively band of fellow countrymen and women, who deal with the practical complexities of modern farming and land ownership, and the challenges faced by conservation and countryside stewardship.