A hedgerow bank is an elongated earthen bank, planted with trees and shrubs, that was traditionally created as a boundary between plots and as a barrier for livestock. It is a landscape feature found mainly in the old cultural landscape on the higher sandy soils. The bank was thrown up using soil from an adjacent ditch or trench.
Function in the past
- Plot boundary — a clear, permanent division between properties
- Livestock barrier — the dense growth kept livestock in or out of a plot
- Wood harvest — the shrubs and trees were periodically cut back (coppice) for utility wood, firewood and tool handles
- Wind and erosion — the banks tempered the wind over the fields
Significance today
Hedgerow banks today have mainly cultural-historical and ecological value. They are part of small-scale landscapes such as bocage landscapes and provide habitat and connecting routes for plants and animals. Many hedgerow banks are protected or are being restored as part of landscape management.
Related concepts are the shelterbelt (a strip of planting without an earthen bank) and the hedge (a planted, clipped row of shrubs). The difference lies mainly in the presence of the earthen bank.
Related terms
- Landscape features
- Boundary
- Cultural-historical value
- Bocage landscape
- Ditch
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