Mammoth task to cut back 12 pairs of Irish yews

The Westcountry is full of hedgerows but it is arguable that none of then are quite as extraordinary as the famous yew hedge that struts its very wobbly stuff in the gardens of Montacute House.

The beautiful grounds of the National Trust property near Yeovil are a hub of activity during the colder months, but the gardening team’s big winter restoration project this year is tackling the 12 pairs of Irish yews which flank the east path of the cedar lawn.

“It has been a while since their last haircut and they are now slightly out of proportion with the rest of the garden,” said a trust spokesman.

“At the end of November and the beginning of December, visitors can see trust’s gardening team reducing the girth and height of the yews quite significantly, returning them to a size more in keeping with how they would have originally been intended to look.

“It will also stop the hedges from splitting and collapsing in the future.”

It will take the team a fortnight to cut all 24 yews and they will be supported by the volunteer gardeners from nearby Lufton College, Yeovil, who will be neatening and mulching the base of the hedges.

The hedge is a must-see part of the property – so it’s just as well the work is being undertaken outside the main visitor season as the “hair-cut” will make the yews look a little bare for a few months.

“But the green growth will soon return – once it does, they will be cut regularly to mimic the shape of the obelisks on the house,” commented

‘The cedar lawn will be looking even more impressive’

Montacute’s head gardener, Chris Gaskin.

“The yew hedges that are being restored were part of the early to mid-19th century planting here at Montacute, so are getting on to be over 150 years old, and the work will bring them back to a much truer size,” he said.

“It’s not the only work that is happening in that area of the garden this winter, as we are installing metal edging around the lawn to make sure it is trim and straight,” Chris added.

“Come the spring, the cedar lawn will be looking even more impressive than it does at the minute.”

Montacute house and garden are open daily – visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk/ montacute-house

Head gardener Chris Gaskin

Tackling the 12 pairs of Irish yews which flank the east path of the cedar lawn at Montacute House