Tying a hedge back

In our new garden we have a lovely mixed hedge down one side, between a 6-foot wooden fence belonging to the owners abutting us (2), and a concrete path.

The hedge is between eight and ten feet high in the main, but overlaps the path to the point of the path being difficult to walk along.

It would be very costly to move the path to one side and allow the hedge to grow out. If I trim the hedge to allow me to walk down the path, then I will be left with basically dead wood.

My thought is to screw some eyes into the fence along the whole length, and tying string to hold each section back, away from the path.

I imagine it would be onerous, and require a lot of string, but I'm hoping it will help to train the hedge without the need to dig it all out and start afresh.

It holds several nests, and I like it. Restarting would be costly, and mean we lose the birds for several years.

Am I going about this the correct way? Or am I just going to have the same issue in a couple of years?

The hedge runs in a straight line from north-west (nearest the house) to south-east (furthest away from the house), with the side facing into the garden being the north-east side.

Does that make sense?

Any comments would be appreciated.
Thank you.

 

What kind of hedge is it, lots of hedging will take a hard cutback, and done now will sprout new growth fairly quickly.

 

I can see why you’ve come up with the idea but I think you will just have the same issue again and again. Also if it’s your neighbours fence they may not appreciate you screwing anything into it plus , if the string is going to be tight and string enough to hold the hedge back then that pull will be on the fence. Could you widen the path?

 

@Butterfly6
Thank you. I've spoken to both neighbours, who are amiable about the idea. I aim to do it in six-foot lengths, thus reducing the overall strain on any individual section. The fence posts are timber, which helps.

The intention is to keep it six inches from the path line initially, allowing for growth and trimming. It might even be possible to tie it back further, but the six inch line is sufficient. I think.

Widening the path is not an option. Actually, I'd like to re-site the path, but costs and logistics don't allow for it, at the moment.

@pete
A short section of the path is laurel, part is holly, a section nearest the house is honeysuckle, and the main part is unknown.

 

If you do not know what the major part is, please post a photo or two. Is it evergreen, coniferous, coloured stems? More clues needed!

 

@infradig
I'll get some photos tomorrow (if I remember) and post them up. Thank you.

 

@infradig (and anyone else who may like to contribute), here's photos of different sections of hedge.
The first is laurel - or at least, I think so.

 

Thank you.

 

I would have no concerns in cutting back the hedge you have illustrated. Once you get it to the desired line, it will regrow and thicken, but at differing rates. I would then lightly trim again to the new line in August once any nesting birds have flown.
Repeat annually
The thicker the hedge , the greater protection from corvids they will enjoy.

 

Thank you for your suggestions @infradig
I did go out and buy some screw-in eyes, and another roll of garden string today. If I don't use it to hold the hedge in, then it'll get used in some other way, another time.

Here's to cutting back - and maybe tying back a little anyway. A belt and braces job - without using any belts or braces!!

 

The first pics are definitely Cherry Laurel

I can’t quite decide if the variegated is a Euonymus or Pittosporum

The flower looks like Lonicera fragrantissima

I would have thought you could keep them trimmed quite tightly, the biggest challenge will be from the cherry laurel as that’s such a thug. It will always imo bounce back so you can go in quite hard

 

I would cut it back quite hard to give it room to grow back. Just make sure it's a bit narrower at the top than at the bottom, sloping out gradually, so the bottom part gets plenty of light. And if there are birds already nesting in it, you should wait until they're done (or leave the sections with active nests).

 

Laurel is almost indestructible. When I moved house, I cut one Laurel bush flush with the ground, so I could turn my trailer around without the bush being in the way. A year later, the sawn off stump was a foot tall plant!

 

I’m surprised it was only a foot tall @ArmyAirForce it must have spent a couple of months sulking.
We have some inherited some cherry laurels which had already moved on from hedge to large shrub. We like the height and screening they provide but must easily cut off several feet each year to keep them in check.

 

We had 300 feet of the stuff, severely overgrown because the last owner didn't do any trimming. I've got rid of some, but it usually needs cutting two to three times a year.