It’s a beautiful sunny day, and the Otago Polytechnic Amenity Students are out learning how to trim a Macrocarpa hedge by the Opoho Bowling club. Here are some tips on how to trim a hedge.

 * Before we think about starting to trim our hedge we need to think about Health and Safety. An important issue in any job that you do.

* The safety gear that you will need are: gloves, steel cap boots, eye protection, and earmuffs if you are using a motorised trimmer.

When you are about to start off, you need to check what type of hedge it is. Will it tolerate a hard cut back or will a hard cut back stress the hedge out?

 If you are using hand shears or a motorised trimmer, the same rules apply. When you are cutting, it is important to keep the equipment flat against the hedge, otherwise you will create a gash in the hedge.

Start at the bottom and work your way up to the top of the hedge, using ladders or scaffolding.

Take your time, it is not a race. Every now and again, stand back and have a look at the hedge from a distance to see if it looks good.

Leaf rake