FENCES AND HEDGES 225 



be trenched and manured and the plants 

 carefully lined up. The spacing will vary with 

 the subject, and the nurseryman will always 

 advise on this point. The training of a hedge 

 involves periodical trim- 

 ming. In the first instance 

 this should be directed to 

 encouraging the lower 

 growth, without which the 

 hedge can never be an 

 efficient barrier, and might 

 develop into an eyesore, ^'s- 62.— Sections of hedge 

 The best method is to trim to a wedge shape, 

 tapering from bottom to top on both sides 

 equally, and to leave the top quite sharp. 



The width at bottom, for a hedge which is 

 eventually to be restricted to five feet in height, 

 need not exceed two feet. The tops of the 

 plants should not be touched until they reach 

 the prescribed height. 



Fig. 62 A shows the section to be worked to 

 in the first instance. When the bottom is well 

 filled in with growth, and the plants have 

 obtained the maximum height, or have sprung 

 above it, the top may be cut to a uniform height, 

 and dressed flat as in Fig. 62 B, or rounded 



