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Janet · 22-05-2017, 01:40 PM posted to uk.rec.gardening

In article ,
says...

On 21/05/2017 21:37, David Rance wrote:
On Sun, 21 May 2017 21:16:58 Chris Hogg wrote:

On Sun, 21 May 2017 20:08:11 +0100, Another John
wrote:

In article ,
Stuart Noble wrote:

Main thing to consider is the ground in front of your hedge. If it's
soft, a stepladder is out, but standing it on a couple of paving slabs
can make it plenty stable enough for an 8ft hedge.

Hmm. I always use stepladders when possible, because of the wide, flat
rungs - more comfortable and stable for my feet.

However I never use them opened out as stepladders: I lean them against
the hedge: all my hedges will easily support the distributed load of a
stepladder, with me+hedgetrimmer standing near the top.

I used to do the same, except there was a real risk that my
step-ladder would fall through the hedge because the individual plants
are too far apart. So tied a length of plank across the top to spread
the load. Nowadays I use a long-reach trimmer and the step-ladder is
no longer necessary.

Reading about the support here for long-reach hedge trimmers, and
starting to think now that it's something I need, what are the
recommendations for a make. I have quite a long hedge of "charme" (which
can be quite tough) in France - I don't know what the name is in English.

David

They are good but do be aware that they can play havoc with your
shoulders if you over do it, so never use for long stretches of time,

I would recommend anyone planning to buy a garden power tool to HIRE
ONE FIRST to test out your own stamina and strength when using it.

BITGOD I used to cut and lay hedges the traditional way by hand.
For the past 15 years I've tended ours with a relatively light, short-
blade electric hedge cutter because it's what I can comfortably carry
and operate at the height of our hedges.

A bigger blade/heavier/long reach machine would do the job much faster
but these days I just don't have the upper body strength/back
flexibility to support more weight/longer reach.

We've lowered the hedges, which helps. When I can no longer reach them
or use this machine safely I shan't replace it; that will be the time to
hire a hedge cutting contractor :-)

Janet