Mulching hedgerow

Back in January I helped Stroud Valleys Project plant a hedge along the road leading to Fromebridge Mill. This is part of the biodiversity net gain activity funded by the Cotswold Connected Canals project to extend the canal across the “missing mile”.

Today was a maintenance activity. With all the rain in March and early April, the plants have had a good chance to start growing already.

Mulch is needed for two purposes. Firstly, it will keep the grass and other vegetation down so that the hedge plants have less to compete with as they get established.

And it’s also an early strategy to provide some protection if we have the same prolonged period of drought like we did last summer. The mulch will retain some water longer in dry conditions.

The weather was quite wild at times, and as a result only the hardiest of volunteers showed up. But we got half the hedge line complete and the rest can be done next week.

Unfortunately I aggravated an arm injury I picked up a few weeks ago so I will stand down physical work for the next couple of weeks while it rests.