Hedgerows in the Hills: A Unique Countryside Event

The Shropshire branch of the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) is marking the charity’s national centenary this year with a unique two-day event celebrating the Shropshire countryside and the hedgerows and trees that shape it.

Hedgerows in the Hills takes place at Acton Scott Heritage Farm on Saturday 24th and Sunday 25th October. This special, one-off event will bring together people of all ages to discover, enjoy and celebrate the wildlife, landscape and traditions of the Shropshire countryside.

Family-friendly weekend

The family-friendly weekend will feature two days of nature walks, talks, hedgelaying and other demonstrations, short films, an art exhibition, stalls and a green woodworking area. Children can enjoy fun nature activities on both days, including a Big Hedge Hunt and Dormouse ‘Den’, and Acton Scott’s magnificent heavy horses will also be on display.

Speakers for talks include specialists on hedgelaying, woodland coppice management, the history of land use in England and Shropshire’s rivers. Artist speakers will begin and end the programme with talks on art, ecology and folklore.

There will be at least three walks each day, looking at fungi, ancient trees, birds and hedgerows. The performance tent will stage the Border Poets on both days as well as singing from the ever-popular Men from Off and Rapsquillion. Polly Bolton and Pam Thom Rowe will perform ‘An Acre of Land’ on the Saturday about the lives and occupations of agricultural workers in the 19th century in the Brown Clee hills, featuring the songs of Fred Jordan, a well known folk singer from the Corvedale and agricultural labourer and hedge layer.

Arts and crafts

Local artists will take over the Old Barn with a selling exhibition of paintings, prints, pottery, illustration, basketry and jewellery and the Marches Book Arts Group will have a table with hedgerow-related original artist books. In the green woodworking area there will be bodging demos, Bob’s Tricky Tree Quiz, biochar demos/information and chair making as well as a table of interesting farm tools!

Sarah Jameson, who runs CPRE’s ongoing Hedgerow Heroes project, said: “Hedgerows are one of the defining features of Shropshire’s countryside. As well as providing shade and shelter for livestock, they give food and a home to many of our native invertebrates, birds and small mammals, so we want to celebrate them!”

Event tickets

Everyone is welcome to this event. Children under 16 go free. Adult tickets are £6 per day. To find out more and book your tickets, visit the CPRE Shropshire’s website at www.cpreshropshire.org.uk/hith.

Hedgerow Heroes opportunities

As well as the Hedgerows in the Hills event, CPRE Shropshire will be running the Hedgerow Heroes project (now in year 6) through the winter and going out to plant hedgerows on farms, smallholdings and community sites with the help of their fantastic volunteers. If you would like to join a planting session contact Sarah Jameson on admin@cpreshropshire.org.uk or sign up for the Hedge Bulletin here: www.cpreshropshire.org.uk/hedgerow-project.

For people interested in learning the traditional skills of hedgelaying and/or coppice management for woodland, CPRE Shropshire will run further two-day workshops this autumn and bookings will be open for these from September. For more information sign up to the Hedge Bulletin at www.cpreshropshire.org.uk/hedgerow-project.

CPRE Shropshire: www.cpreshropshire.org.uk

Contact: Sarah Jameson admin@cpreshropshire.org.uk

CPRE Shropshire is a county branch of the national charity, CPRE, Campaign to Protect Rural England. Based in Shropshire, they work to promote the beauty, tranquility and communities of the county and aim to ensure the countryside is protected for now and future generations.

Photo © Sarah Jameson: Hedge planting.