For cutting back a stout hook with a handle
two and a-half feet long or a stout scythe was used. Hedge shears are
too slow except for ornamental hedges, and even for these the knife is
preferable.
The Honey locust has been extensively used for hedges of late years on
account of its hardiness. Seed should be selected from the most thorny
trees. The trees have a tall, slender, and not hedgy growth, and require
thorough cutting back to secure a thick mass of branches at the bottom,
and very few have received this treatment when young. The care in
planting and rearing is similar to that required by the Osage orange.
Many hedges have been injured or even destroyed by pruning after the
summer growth has commenced. The pruning must be done in spring before
the buds swell, if vigorous growth is to be preserved. But
strong-growing hedges, that are likely to become too high, may be
checked by summer pruning.
Though the cost of planting and starting a hedge is less than that of
building a good board fence, they are not adapted to farmers who will
not give them the continued care required to keep them in good order.
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