In message , Bill Grey
writes

I can vouch for the way beech hedging responds to brutal pruning. Our
green-keeper had a double row of beech hedging round our bowling green. He
wanted more air to get to the green so he removed one line of hedging and
totally trimmed the remainder, removing virtually all of the branching
material. The hedge looked a disaster!!. The following season it filled
out into a beautiful hedge again. Job done!.

Bill


My fathers beech hedge, about 50m of it is "trimmed" each year with a
tractor and hedge cutting attachment, sometimes quite viciously, it
never seems to suffer and always fills back out during the next year.
--
Bill