Hedges: to cut or not to cut

People in rural areas have rarely seen the level of vegetation growth along roadsides as that witnessed this summer.

A combination of heat and moisture has led to a proliferation of ferns, briars, wildflowers and various trees, to the extent that some country roads are now dangerous for motorists, cyclists and pedestrians.

Views are obstructed, you have to edge out onto hazardous junctions and, in some byroads, there’s hardly space for one vehicle to pass, as the hedges are growing outwards by several feet.