Hedge Maintenance in St Albans: Ivy Hedge on a Brick Wall

• WorkHedge maintenance, cutting back and tidying
• AreaSt Albans
• SubjectIvy hedge on a brick boundary wall
• PositionRoadside wall, beside a lamp post

This job was an ivy hedge growing along the top of an old brick boundary wall beside a road in St Albans. Left alone, the growth had thickened and spilled over the top of the wall towards the lamp post and the pavement, so it needed cutting back and tidying to restore a clean line.

We worked from the pavement with a long-reach hedge trimmer, cutting the growth back along the full length of the wall so the line is even. A Tree cutting warning sign and cone were set out beside the work, and the cuttings were fed through our chipper at the kerb instead of being left behind. The photographs show the wall and the hedge on top of it before and after.

What the job involved

• Cutting the overgrown ivy and climbing growth back from the top of the wall
• Working with a long-reach trimmer from the pavement so the whole length of the wall was cut to one even line
• Setting out warning signage while we worked beside the road
• Chipping the cuttings on site and leaving the pavement clear

Keeping an ivy hedge on a wall under control

Ivy on a wall grows quickly and fills out again each season. Cutting it back once is the bigger job; a lighter trim once or twice a year keeps the line tidy, keeps it away from the pavement and lamp post, and is much easier than cutting back a thick, overgrown mass.

Our guide on how often garden hedges should be cut explains how to set an interval, and the one on the best time of year to reduce an overgrown hedge covers the timing for bigger reductions.