Hedgerow management rules: buffer strips

The hedgerow management rules aim to protect hedgerows on agricultural land as these are important ecological building blocks across our landscapes. Hedgerows provide habitat, act as wildlife corridors, slow soil erosion and water run-off. They also support crop pollinators and sequester carbon as well as enriching the landscape.

You must take all reasonable steps to establish and maintain a green cover on land within 2 metres of the centre of a hedgerow covered by the hedgerow management buffer strip rules.   

You must not cultivate or apply fertilisers or pesticides to land within 2 metres of the centre of a hedgerow covered by the hedgerow management buffer strip rules.  

The rules apply to any person responsible for the hedgerow. This includes owners and tenants and anyone employed, engaged or otherwise acting on behalf of those responsible.   

Fertilisers are any material which supplies nutrients for plant growth and includes:  

Pesticides mean anything used for destroying pests and includes: 

A hedgerow is a line of bushes which can include trees. Any trees growing in a hedgerow will be treated as part of the hedgerow. Where a line of trees does not meet this definition, and it is not being managed as a hedgerow, it will not be covered by the rules. The rules also include hedgerows on top of a traditional hedgerow bank.   

The buffer strip rules apply to a hedgerow if it meets the criteria for both: 

Any gap of 20 metres or less will be treated as part of the hedgerow.

The rules apply if a hedgerow is growing on, or next to, land used for agriculture, including: