We have been putting our faith in hedges at Mycenae Gardens. With support from the Postcode Lottery Fund and help from Royal Borough of Greenwich Parks and Open Spaces, volunteers have created both a new dead hedge and a living native hedge.

The living hedge includes alder buckthorn, common alder, hazel, hornbeam, guelder rose and European spindle. As it establishes, its flowers, leaves and berries will provide food and shelter for birds, caterpillars, butterflies and other wildlife.

Why build a dead hedge?

A dead hedge turns pruned branches and other woody garden material into useful habitat. The dense structure offers nesting and shelter for insects and small animals, gives protection from predators and bad weather, and supports the food chain for birds. It also allows us to reuse material from the gardens on site.

Our local Christmas-tree collection helped too: around 100 trees were gathered, with many reused in the new habitat rather than going to waste.

A record turnout, including volunteers from GoodGym and Charlton House and Gardens, helped get the planting done. Temporary green mesh is protecting the young hedge while it becomes established.

Thank you to everyone who dug, carried, planted and wove. The result may look modest today, but it is already making the gardens a richer place for wildlife.

Hedge photograph: Stewart Williams.