Whether you’ve a low-growing lavender or a tall laurel, tidying up your hedges after summer requires the right tools for the job. So, which will you need? “A key factor is to look at the weight of the product you’re potentially going to buy,” says Ryan Patterson, product manager at Husqvarna . “If you’ve got a really high hedge, you don’t want something that’s going to be really heavy.
Battery-powered tools at the moment are the biggest thing because they offer that opportunity to use a lighter product.” Cordless trimmers, which use rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, are lighter and quieter than petrol equivalents and don’t restrict your range like corded versions. However, electric models don’t run out of juice and petrol models have a reputation for being able to slice through really thick, dense hedging with ease.
“It’s always worth investigating the run times (of battery models) and then taking into account how that will affect the weight of the battery,” says Patterson. More powerful batteries will be heavier. “Also, make sure the blade is long enough,” he continues.
“If you have a longer hedge you’re going to want a bigger blade, but if you’ve a small hedge a small blade will work really well.” For lavender and other low-growing hedges Lavender can be pruned back in late summer after flowering and, depending on the amount you have to cut, you might just need some good quality shears, or a grass trimmer might even do the job. Make.