Why young hedge plants are so tempting

A newly planted hedge is, from a rabbit's point of view, a row of fresh, tender shoots sitting at exactly the right height. Bare-root whips planted between November and March have soft stems, thin bark and plenty of new growth once spring arrives, and they have none of the resilience of an established hedge. A single night's browsing can strip a whip back to the ground, and repeated nibbling will kill it outright. Deer do the same on a larger scale: they take the leading shoot first, which ruins the shape of the hedge before it has even begun to thicken. The frustrating truth is that you often do not notice the damage until the plant fails to break into leaf, by which time the growing season has been wasted.

Know what you are dealing with

Before you buy anything, work out which animals are visiting. Rabbits bite stems off cleanly at a diagonal, usually below about 60cm, and leave droppings and worn runs in the grass. Hares and voles cause similar damage, though voles tend to nibble bark at ground level beneath mulch. Deer leave torn, ragged ends rather than clean cuts, because they lack upper front teeth and pull at the stems. Height is a useful clue: muntjac browse low, roe deer reach around 1.2m, and fallow and red deer can strip growth well above head height. Fallow and roe also fray young stems with their antlers in late summer and autumn, shredding the bark on one side.

Tree guards: the simplest first line of defence

For individual whips, spiral guards and clear tree shelters are the quickest fix. A spiral guard wraps around the stem and protects it up to about 60cm, which deals with rabbits and the lower browsing of deer. Clear tree shelters are usually 1.2m tall, which sees off most deer species as well as rabbits, and they create a small greenhouse that speeds up early growth. Fit them properly:

• Push the guard firmly into the soil so there is no gap at the base for rabbits to nibble through.
• Support taller shelters with a sturdy stake, driven in beside the plant rather than through the rootball.
• Choose shelters with ventilated tops, or remove them once the hedge is tall enough, so plants do not cook on a hot day.
• Use biodegradable or recyclable guards if you would rather not collect piles of plastic later on.

Guards are cheap and quick, but they have a drawback: they hide the stem from view, which is exactly where problems with ties begin.

A temporary mesh fence

For a whole new hedge, a temporary fence is often cheaper than guarding every plant and gives better protection all round. Rabbit netting should have a mesh of about 31mm, or 13mm where young rabbits are a problem, and needs to be at least 60cm high and buried 15cm into the ground or turned outwards at the base to stop animals digging under it. Deer fencing needs to be much taller: 1.8m for most species, though 1.2m will hold off muntjac. Angle the fence slightly outwards if deer are pressing against it, and keep it taut with a strand of wire along the top. If you are only protecting a short run, a roll of plastic mesh on canes will do for a season or two, but check it after gales.

Ties, stakes and the strangling problem

This is the part that catches people out. A tie or guard that is fine in March can be cutting into the stem by July. As the plant grows, the stem thickens, and anything wrapped tightly around it will girdle the bark, restrict the flow of sap and eventually kill the plant — often after you think it is doing well. Check ties and guards at least twice a year, in spring and again in late summer. Loosen or replace anything that is pinching, and remove guards altogether once the stem is too thick to sit comfortably inside. If you use rubber ties, leave a finger's width of slack and check that the stake itself is not rubbing.

Aftercare for a hedge that gets away

Protection is only half the job. Keep the base of the hedge clear of weeds and grass for the first two or three years, as competition for water and nutrients kills more young hedges than browsing does. Water deeply during dry spells in the first two summers, and mulch with well-rotted organic matter, keeping it a few centimetres clear of the stems. Once the hedge reaches about 1.5m and its stems are woody, most rabbits will lose interest and deer damage becomes a matter of trimming rather than survival. Cut back the leading shoots lightly in the second winter to encourage bushy growth from the base, and keep checking those ties. A little patience now gives you a hedge that will look after itself for decades.