Cutting top of hedge.

[ericmark]

I have now 4 hedge cutters, mains powered strong, and non extending, then a petrol four in one on an arm, but too heavy, a battery four in one, the brush cutter, and pruning saw great, but the hinge on the hedge cutter wobbles about and has been damaged so hard to alter, so got a new hedge cutter on a pole, with far better hinge at top, not as powerful, one battery instead of two, but it will cut the hedge, but now realise it is my body which is the problem, not the hedge cutter, all have a harness, the 2 multi-tools harness seems to be designed for the strimmer and brush cutter, the stand-alone hedge cutter, the harness only seems to help carry it A to B it does not take much of the weight.

The petrol unit is now never used, too hard to start, and only thing it has which battery one does not, is the leaf blower, and I have a mains one of them which is better.

The 40 volt Lidi is great to strim with, and cut off branches, but the hedge cutter was not that good, the 20 volt Lidi is far better, longer reach, lighter, better hinge on the cutter head, and for side of hedge great, it is the top where I find it hard.

So any ideas to make it easier for me? When we had a gardener he would climb on top of the hedge and work his way along it, not really an option for me at 75.

This looks easy, but it is what I find hard.

 

[Wayners]

Access is the problem. I always found a ladder plus a platform.
Use a platform to cut to the height as you can walk along but then grab a ladder to get in there to tidy up.
Your 75 years old so consider getting young help or even better a gardener in.
It's hard graft plus you need to pick up the cuttings and get rid of it all.
My 20 trees took most of the day plus two trips to the tip.

 

[ericmark]

Hedges on a slope, so ladders are non-starter, it is the other side of this hedge, which new owners have left to grow wild, my side I have two apple trees, but side of hedge is OK, it is the top which is causing a problem.

 

[Odds]

Perhaps an adjustable tripod ladder would be of assistance to do the job?

 

[Fred Blogs]

I've got two leylandia hedges one belongs to my neighbour who backs on to my garden. Both the hedges are too wide to get to the middle. I also have a garden that slopes and I am 75. I can't cut the hedges down because my neighbour doesn't want to lose hers so the middle never gets cut and looks a mess. Leylandia should be cut down banned and burned but it is what it is. I now pay someone to do mine but even he has problems with it and doesn't like cutting it.

 

[ericmark]

I like the hedge, and the one neighbour found a tree surgeon to reduce the height, and we club together to get it cut, the other side, one my apple trees don't help, or his elderberry, so I just cut my side, his side is getting worse and worse, but that's up to him, I don't see it so don't care. However, to cut top from his side is a lot easier to my side, I need to try with a harness to take the weight.

 

[blup]

Those adjustable head pole hedge trimmers are "sold" to cut the top of a hedge at 90 degrees, The reality is you cannot see what you are doing, so get a step ladder or better still a combination ladder with a platform function. Or just trestles and scaffold board.