- Location
- Ceredigion
Difficult ones as in these parts the middle of the Hillock is seen as the boundary, so if you start building Hillocks on your side of the ditch you are building was is recognised as an official boundary
Boundary ditches
- Thread starter Steevo
- Start date
you havnt lived if you havnt got houses with back gardens along either one field boundary or even 3 ? With got that and the agro over the years, worst ones are the newones come into the village want to smash everything down their side, last year we had one clown cut a large tree down wellinside his boundary and dump it all over the hedge into our field, my brother the other day had an argument with another one wanted the hedge cut down more so he could see the cattle then we get garden waste thrown over the cut hedge? oh oh the joys of urban farming ? One other clown choose to pipe the ditch on his bit then steal the land up to our barbered wire fence?
- Location
- East yorks
Will be gone by next year, that’s what we do and it’s only a bit rough the first year
Exfarmer
Member
- Location
- Bury St Edmunds
The law in England And Wales is, that unless otherwise stated, a ditch on the far side of the hedge belongs to you, and I understand, you have 2 feet of bank to place the cleanings.
Further, I believe in law, you have the right of access To clean your ditch.
It becomes far more complicated where, as we used to have, a double hedge and ditch. Luckily these wer clearly marked in the deeds and we both accepted that we would have to cope with each others cleanings.
Further, I believe in law, you have the right of access To clean your ditch.
It becomes far more complicated where, as we used to have, a double hedge and ditch. Luckily these wer clearly marked in the deeds and we both accepted that we would have to cope with each others cleanings.
Exfarmer
Member
- Location
- Bury St Edmunds
Its not just in urban settings. Friend of mine deep in the countryside realising the neighbour had made very big heap of all manner of rubbish including broken toys lawn and hedge trimmings over his back fence placed it back to nearly block the back door with a a teleporter at full stretch
- Location
- Ceredigion
Thanks , like I said, learn something every day around here we just use the soil bank as the boundary, i would not dream of doing anything over that without permission
Exfarmer
Member
- Location
- Bury St Edmunds
The trouble is the law was made when a ditch was dug by a man with a spade, different turning up with a 15 tonne tracked machine. I agree no better way to offend a neighbour than trespassing on his property however well meaning.
Boohoo
Member
- Location
- Newtownabbey
Never understood why anyone would dig a ditch and then pile up the soil alongside it to stop water reaching the ditch.
- Location
- Ceredigion
Field boundaries are Hillocks around here the ditch being on the top side - built mainly to provide shelter for stock and to divide up land when Common Land was enclosed
caveman
Member
- Location
- East Sussex.
If you keep your ditches clean, you should lower the water table on your land, allowing absorption from the heavens.
And why would digging a ditch at the top of your land, to intercept run off from your neighbour above, banking the spoil below it, prevent water from your land running uphill into the ditch?
- Location
- East yorks
The issue is if it’s become totally overgrown you need 20ft to put it all in
2ft would resemble trumps wall 
Exfarmer
Member
- Location
- Bury St Edmunds
Father on afarm in the1950’s which had been a victorian model farm. The ministry did the ditches with a dragline And they spread the soil up to 30 feet out. No work had been done there for 50 years and the farm had been ranched, excpet for the patches the Warag had insisted ploughing.The issue is if it’s become totally overgrown you need 20ft to put it all in
After this ditching was done father discovered a well drained farm
Boohoo
Member
- Location
- Newtownabbey
It's alright for stopping water from your neighbour's land on the high side but then you're relying on your neighbour on the low side to get rid of the water off your land. If your ditch is on the high side no amount of maintenance will lower the water table on your own land.
My neighbours land is lower than ours, and in the flood plain. He dug out a new ditch within his boundary, the spoil is the far side next to the boundary fence. He says it will drain my land as well, well no because the water now can not go the clay bank he's made, but as I'm planting a wider hedge its not much loss to me. His house is even lower lying, and he has he's effectively blocked the water on to his land because when it flooded even the huge drainage ditches can not cope, and it would spread up my field.
Hedges and ditch are made for lawyers to make money from, a simple dispute has cost one side near me, £40,000 in costs. As I understood it the ditch was dug on the boundary line the, spoil put on your side which you then planted your hedge into. The problem comes when the ditch fills in with spoil and the neighbour in corporates into their land, and there is no clear evidence of the ditch unless you get Time Team in. So if you have the machinery I would give the hedge a radical trim, and dig it out over the hedge, or it will end up as part of the turf field.
Hedges and ditch are made for lawyers to make money from, a simple dispute has cost one side near me, £40,000 in costs. As I understood it the ditch was dug on the boundary line the, spoil put on your side which you then planted your hedge into. The problem comes when the ditch fills in with spoil and the neighbour in corporates into their land, and there is no clear evidence of the ditch unless you get Time Team in. So if you have the machinery I would give the hedge a radical trim, and dig it out over the hedge, or it will end up as part of the turf field.
- Location
- Ceredigion
so if the hedge is my side the ditch i can do as i like with it
- Location
- North Wales
A lot of grant schemes won't pay on boundary hedges as they say you don't have complete control over the hedge. But I suppose if you have a ditch on the far side it's your hedge and ditch and so should be able to claim for hedge maintenance grants. Interesting thought
24/7 farming
Member
- Location
- Donegal
No better feeling when it's done tho!, these ditches had seen no one in 20+ years, 2 handy days seen over 500m cleared (we own both sides!)
Will get digger back hopefully between 1st and 2nd cut next year and cart the spoil into a few low spots, few drains to get up and running again now too.
Have had two 5ton trailers size loads of timber out of the trees that had grown in the drains!, with another load or so to go (someone used fresh willow for fencing posts many moons ago and the bloody things all grew!!)
Have gained 10ft of field back as previous fence was 3 strand barb (pulled out as all rotten) was completely overgrown and machines couldn't get in because of the trees.
New fence will hav strainers each end and run of electric on temp posts which can be mowed under nw and again. Can already see a few wet spots in the fields shrinking with the water level lowered
Hopefully a wee scrape every five years or so nw should keep ontop of it
Will get digger back hopefully between 1st and 2nd cut next year and cart the spoil into a few low spots, few drains to get up and running again now too.
Have had two 5ton trailers size loads of timber out of the trees that had grown in the drains!, with another load or so to go (someone used fresh willow for fencing posts many moons ago and the bloody things all grew!!)
Have gained 10ft of field back as previous fence was 3 strand barb (pulled out as all rotten) was completely overgrown and machines couldn't get in because of the trees.
New fence will hav strainers each end and run of electric on temp posts which can be mowed under nw and again. Can already see a few wet spots in the fields shrinking with the water level lowered
Hopefully a wee scrape every five years or so nw should keep ontop of it
Exfarmer
Member
- Location
- Bury St Edmunds
Unless there is anything in the deeds to say otherwise
caveman
Member
- Location
- East Sussex.
Is there any reason why you shouldn't have a ditch on the bottom of your land, if you so want?
- Tags
- drainage harrow land drain roots