It is mid-May. The hedge looks like it has got completely out of hand. The hedge trimmer is in the shed, ready, and the urge to sort it out is entirely understandable. 🌿 It is also the worst possible time of year to do it. Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, it is a criminal offence to intentionally damage or destroy the nest of any wild bird while that nest is in use or being built. Every species of garden bird is covered without exception. This is not guidance — it is law. And May is not a neutral point in the nesting calendar. It is the peak. Active nests in a typical garden hedge right now: Blackbird (Turdus merula) — the first brood may have only just fledged, and the pair will have begun their second clutch in the same hedge, often in the same fork. Up to three broods are possible before late July. Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) — its domed moss nest sits at the base of the hedge in dense cover. First-brood chicks may still be in the nest or have only just left. A second nest may already be under construction in the same section. Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla) — arrived from migration in April and will have laid immediately. In May its eggs are incubating or its first chicks are in the nest at one to two metres height — exactly where a trimmer blade runs first. Robin (Erithacus rubecula) — nests within 50 cm of the ground in the densest cover. A second brood is often underway in May. The nest is found almost exclusively by destroying it. Dunnock (Prunella modularis) — two broods between April and July, moss nest in low scrub. Its turquoise-blue eggs are among the most beautiful and least visible in a garden hedge. May is the moment when the hedge looks most in need of cutting — and the moment when active nest density is highest across the entire year. The only remaining clear window is August. The hedge held through winter; it will hold through summer. 🐦 #WildlifeGardening #HedgerowHabitat #NestingBirds #GardenWildlifeIt is mid-May. The hedge looks like it has got completely out of hand. The hedge trimmer is in the shed, ready, and the urge to sort it out is entirely understandable. 🌿 It is also the worst possible time of year to do it. Under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, it is a criminal offence to intentionally damage or destroy the nest of any wild bird while that nest is in use or being built. Every species of garden bird is covered without exception. This is not guidance — it is law. And May is not a neutral point in the nesting calendar. It is the peak. Active nests in a typical garden hedge right now: Blackbird (Turdus merula) — the first brood may have only just fledged, and the pair will have begun their second clutch in the same hedge, often in the same fork. Up to three broods are possible before late July. Wren (Troglodytes troglodytes) — its domed moss nest sits at the base of the hedge in dense cover. First-brood chicks may still be in the nest or have only just left. A second nest may already be under construction in the same section. Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla) — arrived from migration in April and will have laid immediately. In May its eggs are incubating or its first chicks are in the nest at one to two metres height — exactly where a trimmer blade runs first. Robin (Erithacus rubecula) — nests within 50 cm of the ground in the densest cover. A second brood is often underway in May. The nest is found almost exclusively by destroying it. Dunnock (Prunella modularis) — two broods between April and July, moss nest in low scrub. Its turquoise-blue eggs are among the most beautiful and least visible in a garden hedge. May is the moment when the hedge looks most in need of cutting — and the moment when active nest density is highest across the entire year. The only remaining clear window is August. The hedge held through winter; it will hold through summer. 🐦 #WildlifeGardening #HedgerowHabitat #NestingBirds #GardenWildlife