Hedges - Why are Hedges Disappearing?

From the 1940s up to the 1990s about a quarter of our hedgerows were destroyed, at a rate of about 4,000 miles a year. This happened mainly in the east of Britain in order to create large, prairie–like fields. Farmers removed hedges to make more room for crops and to enable machinery such as combine harvesters to move around the fields more easily. Also, hedges have to be cut and the growing plants in them use moisture and nutrients in the soil which could be used by the crops - all of which is extra expense to the farmer. Loss of hedgerows has slowed since the 1990s, but neglect and damage remain significant threats.