Not every day in the field is exciting. Today I got to demolish live cedar hedges (Thuja occidentalis) so workers could come in and install new fencing. At least it was a nice change from routine lawn care tasks.
Down by half
First, we used a chainsaw to take the hedges down by half and to gain better access. And I confess to enjoying this part of the job because I don’t always get to use a chainsaw.
Since I am a green professional I would much rather install new cedars. Taking out live hedges seems like waste but on closer inspection it was clear that some of the hedges weren’t exactly hundred percent. For example, some were crudely propped up by Arbortie.
Heavy digging
Second came the rough part: digging up the root balls and removing all of the green waste. We left open tarps close by for speedier clean up.
By cutting the hedges in half we left ourselves enough stem length for leverage. It’s something like a cedar joystick. Some of the root balls popped nicely; others required assistance from axes.
In the last step we raked up all debris and evened out the holes. Remember, the depressions we created could be considered a hazard so we covered them up. Then we did a courtesy blow but, considering the current heat wave conditions, it was quick.
Permanent landscape solutions
This seems to be a common theme lately. As people get fed up with aging hedges so they replace them with fencing which doesn’t require watering or annual shearing. It also doesn’t have any gaps that would allow for stares from neighbours.
Sometimes river rock is used to replace small lawn patches that get abused by dogs. Also, when people get tired of fixing lawns destroyed by animals looking for European chafer beetles they reach for alternatives.
