Jimbo wrote:

Hello Jimbo

J I have a newly planed beech hedge around 5 ft high and quite
J spindly - I want one section of hedge to be around 4ft high
J and another to be around 10ft high. Obviously I want it to
J fill out and be quite dense but would like advice on the
J best way to do this. I was thinking of perhaps laying the
J hedge on the lower hight part - rather than chopping the
J tops off.

You can't lay a new hedge, it has to be firmly established. And beech
isn't the easiest of things to lay properly anyway. It can be done,
but it won't look very nice.

I think the best way is topping and trimming. Once a year, say at the
end of winter (so you don't lose the leaf covering through the winter)
but before it starts growing. Feb/March time. It'll grow dense and to
a controlled height. One of the good things about beech is that it
doesn't need much light, so if in time a hole does appear you can
plant to fill it.

--
Simon Avery, Dartmoor, UK Ý http://www.digdilem.org/