Contrary to what some grumpy gardeners might think (fortunately in the minority!), the recommendations of nature protection bodies not to prune hedges or trees between March and the end of July are not there to bother them. It's simply a useful, even indispensable, recommendation for the survival of birds and part of garden wildlife and farmland. Hedge pruning, especially with noisy machinery, destroys nests and scares adult birds.
C'est important pour les oiseaux !
It's important for the life of birds, as they find shelter and food in our hedges (this depends on the species that make up the hedge). But this pause in pruning is especially vital to allow birds (blackbird, song thrush, dunnock, robin) to nest in peace. Indeed, the nesting period runs from the start of spring to the end of summer. These brood periods vary depending on the bird species and the climate (or even sometimes the weather). In other words, it's not uncommon for pairs to start nesting before 15 March and continue after the end of July. Let's say a compromise had to be found and we settled on fixed dates (a little arbitrary) for simplicity.
We talk about hedge pruning in publications on the topic, but it also applies to pruning trees, obviously. Anyway, it's not the right time to prune either the trees or the wildlife that lives there.
Que dit la législation ?
In France and Belgium, farmers, through environmental regulations, are obliged to comply with these guidelines. In France, farmers cannot prune their hedges using motorised equipment from 15 March to 31 July, dating from a 24 April 2015 decree. For the Walloon Region, farmers are required to observe this directive from 1 April to 15 August, since 2018.
For individuals, it is (for now!) only a recommendation from nature conservation organisations: with LPO at the forefront in France; and Natagora (Wallonia) and Natuurpunt (Flanders) in Belgium.
Note that the Brussels-Capital Region also prohibits individuals from pruning hedges between 1 April and 15 August.
For more information concerning the legislation on this topic in France, LPO has published a legal brief on the protection of hedges, trees and woodlands.
Quand tailler nos haies dans ce cas ?
It is important to prune at the right time with respect for the plant and wildlife that live there. Either before sap rises in trees and shrubs in late winter, followed by a light pruning in autumn: January–February, excluding any frost periods, then November–December. Nevertheless, watch out for small animals that could hibernate at the foot of your hedge, such as the dormouse or the hedgehog.
In a biodiversity-friendly garden, you can also let your woody plants grow naturally, for example in a wild, meadow-like hedge. In short, leaving hedges and trees alone in spring and summer is mainly a matter of common sense and respect for nature, of which we are a part.
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