Habitat coarse woody debris - the dead hedge

At first glance, the dead hedge may appear to be nothing more than discarded undergrowth. On closer inspection, however, the wall of coarse woody debris turns out to be a valuable habitat for animals.

Insects, including many beetle species, lay their eggs in the rotten wood - the larvae find shelter and food here. Certain wild bees later use the beetles' feeding tunnels as a nursery. The dead hedge also provides winter quarters for a wide variety of insects, millipedes, spiders and isopods. Vertebrates such as hedgehogs, reptiles and amphibians seek shelter in the thicket of coarse woody debris. Bird species that breed in the visual protection of the dead branches include, for example, the yellowhammer and the wren.

In 1986, the brothers Heinrich and Hermann Benjes described this cost-effective way of creating near-natural hedges in the agricultural landscape. Birds and the wind carry seeds of woody plants into the wall over time. If nature is allowed to take its course, a hedge of shrubs and trees from the nearby surroundings will gradually develop.

Image caption: 1) The onion yellow face bee (Hylaeus punctulatissimus), which is no larger than 9 mm, uses the feeding tunnels of small beetle larvae in deadwood to build its nest. 2) The dense branches of the dead hedge provide shelter for ground-nesting birds such as the Yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella). 3) Near-natural hedges provide connecting routes and refuges for native species in otherwise monotonous agricultural landscapes.

English translation of the information panel in the Botanical Garden. Original German text:  Dr. Barbara Ditsch, Anne Göhre