Steven McCulloch - Hedge Laying Contractor

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Steven McCulloch - Hedge Laying Contractor Hedge Layer in the winter. Gardener in the summer. Quality workmanship all year round.

Garden maintenance and planting
Hedge laying, wild flower meadows and land management

What else do you do on your day off and it's pouring with rain? Split 2 tonnes of logs obviously! Shoulder's aching a bi...
24/10/2026

What else do you do on your day off and it's pouring with rain?
Split 2 tonnes of logs obviously! Shoulder's aching a bit now after swinging the axe 🪓 😉

23/10/2026

An awkward garden hedge! Some Laurel, some Beech (some if it dead) and some Hazel. All grown along a boundary with a steep bank down the other side plus a large Sycamore taking all the light.

But I like a challenge!

Had the added issue of some tall Elms on the boundary as well. Once they get to this size they are susceptible to Dutch Elm disease which kills them, so they had to go. That's where Andy comes in and he's amazing. I'm his mid sixties and still climbing like a demon. There's lots of these folk in this world and they're still working hard and strong as. I admire all of them and hope I'm still smashing down hedges at their age. Respect.

21/10/2026

The Devon Bullock hedge! Well, nearly but I'll explain. When we need to restore hedgebanks, in Devon we play the hedge as a "double comb" either side of the hedgebank so the excess soil can be put in the middle and restoring the height of the bank. When the bank is in good condition, there's no need to do this, so we lay the hedge as a single comb across the width of the hedgebank. This coming in all the gaps at the bottom and making the boundary stock proof.

So for this hedge around a parking area, with a bank that was never going to be "cast up", we've laid it as a double comb similar to what we'd do for a Devon Bullock hedge.

11/10/2026

National Hedgelaying Championships!! 10 regional styles being represented across 15 classes. Always magnificent to see such diversity of hedgelaying culture on a single site and great to see old friends and make new ones. Events like these show us hedgelaying isn't a solitary pursuit and we're all working together for the common goal of improving hedges and our own skills.

At the nationals, competitors compete against each other in their chosen regional style, the winner from each class then get judged against each other to have the overall Supreme Champion.

I competed in the Devon class and my work fortunately caught the judge's eye. The Supreme Champion went to Chrissy Davies, in the Welsh Open class with Reserve Champion, Nigel Adams cutting South of England style.

Huge congratulations to every competitor, it was a really challenging hedge in the main and rock hard ground conditions increasing the difficulty.

Thank you to all the organisers at the National Hedgelaying Society, run by volunteers, to represent hedgelaying on the national scene and put on a magnificent competition every year.



06/10/2026

RULE BREAKER!!!! Laying downhill 🤪. Why? Well, the hedge dictates what I need to do to make the best possible laid hedge.

Like most hedges, there are always sections which aren't as good as the rest, therefore, the hedgelayer has to work around getting the best possible result, and in this case it means laying downhill.

This garden hedges had been laid Devon style due to the customer's need to be able to maintain it safely. With all my work, I prioritise working with what I have and what is best for the hedge. Not just make it look pretty 😍.

04/10/2026

Successful trip down near Buckfastleigh for the hedge competition. Lovely hedge to work on for this "hand tools only" competition. Material was an ideal size to make a good hedge. My short handled Gilpin doing most of the work amongst the tight hazel stools.

Really impressive work throughout the classes, and really good to see some up and coming cutters in the Open class. They are the future!

Thanks to all the team for putting on a great comp, great food afterwards, always essential at a hedge match.

I thought I'd be hanging halfway through as it was my first hedge of the season, and I was 😂. But good to have a proper run out before the nationals next weekend......

02/10/2026

Love these tools, they work really well for me.

Two cracking Yorkshire pattern hooks, super versatile and do the bulk of the work.

The big axe does my real heavy lifting for those big sleepers, priceless.

The short handle axe, super fit have cutting medium sleepers, especially in tights spaces.

They've had a little tickle with my beach pebble and are ready for comp tomorrow. Really looking forward to it, lovely comp in South Devon using hand tools only for all competitors. It'll be super quiet working with just the sound of chopping. Hard work mind.

Hopefully, I can produce some nice work in my first bit of hedging for the year. Nothing like going straight into a comp completely cold, I'll be hanging half way through!! 😂

27/09/2026

It's all about timing to create the right conditions. Back in the summer I showed the Southern Marsh Orchids on our community green and was asked how to get them.

As with all my work, it's not that difficult, it's about working with what you have, timing your maintenance and a slice of luck!

I'm no magician, just do what's been done for centuries and this creates the conditions for nature to do the rest!

13/09/2026

Hedgelaying season has started!! I volunteer with the Blackdown Hills Hedge Association and we run one training course a month from September to February and this was our first one.

We always have 2 trainees to one professional hedgelaying instructor to insure you get the best tuition on the day with a wealth of knowledge to draw upon.

If you're interested, book through the BHHA.info website.

Apologies for the clerical error, courses are £60 per person!

19/08/2026

My local village Millennium Green is an incredible place and I've been involved to help restore the large pond that became completely choked with sediment and Reed Mace. Open freshwater bodies are vitally important for a huge range of wildlife and plants therefore, it was imperative this pond was acted upon before it was to late.

I worked with Nick Benge from Roborough Rewilders and Dave the expert diggerman and within two days the pond is as it was 26 years ago.

Really looking forward to seeing all the wildlife come "flooding" back 🤪 over the coming weeks. The Swallows and House Martins are already dipping down to the pond for a drink on the wing, which they've not been able to do for several years now.

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