Hedges as a valuable component of biodiversity enhancement in organic orchards (BIOFRUITNET Practice Abstract)

Summary

Benefits
Planting hedgerows will enhance the ecological value of the orchards and provide an increased supply of food and nesting sites for a variety of birds, insects, amphibians and other small animals.
Practical recommendation
Selection of suitable species and planting material
• Build up a natural herbaceous margin of wild plant species along its edge over time as valuable refuges for many plant and animal species.
• A hedge should provide a rich flowering offering shelter for insects over as long a period as possible, ideally outside the fruit tree flowering period.
• Select suitable woody plants taking care not to introduce host plants for diseases and pests relevant in fruit growing. (e.g., elder is a host plant for cherry vinegar fly; hawthorn can transmit fire blight).
• Suitable trees and shrubs for a near-natural hedge can vary depending on the region/country. In Germany, for example, the following have proven to be suitable:
- Trees: Field maple (Acer campestre), Rowan (Sorbus aucuparia), Hornbeam (Carpinus betulus);
- Shrubs: Dogwood (Cornus sanguinea), Hazel (Coryllus avellana), Elder (Sambucus nigra), Cornelian cherry (Cornus mas).
Planting and care
• Protect individual plants against browsing by deer and hares with browsing protection wire or repellent paint.
• Provide sufficient water, especially in the year of planting.
• Hedges should preferably be cut back ("stocked") in sections at 8-10 year intervals, not full length, so that different age and depth structures can develop within the hedge.