Ch. XLIII.] 



ON HEDGES. 



539 



niently for " pleashing" clown in the new hedge. All decayed stuff of the 

 old hedge is also drawn out behind, and as much of the living stuff standing 

 on, or in front of the old line, is reserved for plcashwq doicn, leaving 

 as often as possible a living stake to strengthen the whole. The ridding 

 on both sides being completed, the ditch is next scoured out to the original 

 depth ; throwing all the loose earth and scourings to make good the bank 

 whence it had slipped, and u'ithal raising the crown of the bank at the 

 same time. The hedger next begins at the left hand end of the hedge to 

 drive a row of stakes along the line of the new ridge of the bank, and lays 

 down the reserved pleashes, first bringing them behind one or two of the 

 stakes, and pushing their brush out again in front, to form the outside face 

 of the hedge. Some hedgers lay a wreath of dead bushes at the base of the 

 stakes to lay the pleashes on, or rather to " fill up," as they call it; but 

 it is a bad plan, because this wreath of dead stuff soon rots and leaves the 

 bottom of the hedge hollow. The best and most lasting hedge is that 

 made entirely of living pleashes, if enough can be had for the purpose. 

 The pleashes being laid down regularly, and interwoven with the stakes, 

 renders the whole like a piece of lattice-work, steady and firm. 



Much has been written on the manner of wo/c/ii/jy/ the pleashes, in order 

 that thev may be easily bent down without breaking them off from the root 

 on which they grow. The usual way of laying a pleash is by bending it 

 back with the left hand, while a notch is made with the bill about a foot 

 above its base, splitting it through the middle downwards, as shown in the 

 annexed cut. The next blow of the bill cuts off the remaining stump, as 



at B, and then the pleash is laid down. To this it has been objected, that 

 the first cut of the bill should be upivard and not downward ; because an 

 opening is made at the bottom of the pleash to hold rain, and consequently 

 rot the root. But this is an unnecessary piece of scientific refinement, 

 applicable, indeed, in pruning a peach tree, but not at all in the case of the 

 rustic thorn, as may be witnessed in the next summer's growth of the 

 pleasii so treated. 



When the pleashes are all laid down, the ujiper part above them is filled 

 up with branches of the bushes cut out of the old hedge, firmly, but not 

 too closely wattled in. The hedge is finished by placing the headers. 

 These are long slender rods ; a couple of which are worked on at the same 

 time, and which are alternately turned over each other, and zig-zagly 

 between the stakes. The stakes are then all driven down even with the 

 headers, and those which are too high cut smoothly off. Fagoting up and 

 piling the redundant stuft", and tying up the overplus stakes, bushes, &c., 

 finishes the work. 



Although the pleashes are thus commonly bent in one way, yet when a 

 hedge is deficient in live wood they may be turned to it from both sides — 

 as in the following cut, in which the pleash a is turned one way, and the b 

 another : they are interwoven among the hedge-stakes, and the " edders," 



