The Benefit of Healthy Hedgerows

Abstract

There is an interest in hedgerows because they are home to both plants and animals and provide habitat connection corridors to enable wildlife can move around the landscape. They also deliver a number of additional benefits to farmland, beyond that of a field boundary. These can include: • shelter for livestock • regulation of water supply for crops • improvements in animal health • reduction in soil erosion • reduction in the need for pesticide use • sustaining pollinator communities which support productive farming • providing a sustainable source of wood fuel • reducing the risk of bovine tuberculosis in cattle herds • reducing the rate of climate change through carbon storage • reducing pollution