When to cut a hedge

Nesting birds come first

It is an offence to intentionally damage or destroy the nest of any wild bird while it is in use or being built. That applies all year, in any garden.

The RSPB treats March to September as the main nesting season and suggests avoiding hedge cutting then where you can. If a hedge does need cutting in that time, watch it for a few days and check it thoroughly first. If you find an active nest, the work around it has to wait. Carrying on once you know a nest is there is an offence.

Some birds nest early or late, so a check is worth doing in any month.

The 2024 hedgerow rules don’t cover gardens

The Management of Hedgerows (England) Regulations 2024 stop farm hedgerows being cut or trimmed from 1 March to 31 August. They apply to hedgerows on or next to agricultural land. They do not apply to a hedge around a house or marking the boundary of a private garden.

So there is no fixed closed season for a garden hedge. The nesting bird law above is what matters.

The best time for common hedges

Timings from the RHS. A neat formal hedge usually needs cutting more often than an informal one.

Leylandii

Two or three times between April and the end of August. Don’t cut into bare, leafless growth: it won’t grow back. Trimming after August can leave bare patches.

Lawson cypress

Twice, in spring and summer. Like most conifers, it won’t reshoot from old wood.

Laurel

Twice in the growing season. The RHS suggests secateurs for big leaves like these, as shears leave unsightly cut leaves.

Privet and box

Two or three times in the growing season.

Beech

Once, in late summer. An August trim lets it hold its brown leaves through winter.

Hornbeam

Once, in mid to late summer.

Yew

Twice, in summer and autumn. Unlike most conifers it regrows from old wood, so it can take a hard cut.

Hawthorn

Twice, in summer and autumn.

Lowering a hedge that has got away from you

A big reduction is different from a routine trim. For leylandii, the RHS suggests taking off no more than about a third of the height, ideally in early April, then letting it recover. That timing sits in the nesting season, so the hedge needs checking first.

Most conifers won’t grow back from bare wood, so a hedge cut back past its green growth may stay brown on that face. Our guide to trimming, reducing or replacing a hedge helps you decide what to ask for. If a neighbour’s hedge is the problem, see high hedges and neighbours.

Trees inside a hedge may be protected. Use our protected tree check before any large tree in or near the hedge is cut.