H Ryder wrote:

Sorry to keep asking questions but have another one. The garden is bordered
by a natural hedgerow, mainly hawthorn but beginning to be taken over by
brambles. How should I prune it/cut it so as to minimise the brambles? If I
just cut with a hedgetrimmer will I end up with just bramble eventually or
will the hawthorn survive (I have small children so want to avoid the great
trailing whippy bits of bramble.) TIA

I'd keep the bramble in the hedgerow, honeysuckle and rosa rugosa too.
That way you get your own free supply of brambles when in season. Just
slice them off when they stick out too far to be comfortable.

I doubt you can ever eliminate brambles, you get new plants from seed
all the time from bird droppings (same with edlerberry).

I doubt there is anything you could do with a domestic hedgetrimmer that
would do more than mildly discourage an established wild hawthorns
hedge. You are more likely to burn out the hedgetrimmer if you try too
hard on old wood. Have you sen the industrial strength flails that
farmers use to cut it by the mile?

Regards,
Martin Brown