1. The designs of early garden mazes were often simple adaptations of the widespread single-path labyrinth designs laid during the 12th to 14th centuries in the floors of churches and cathedrals, primarily in France and Italy.

2. It is an offence under Section 1 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act of 1981 to intentionally take, damage or destroy the nest of any wild bird while it is in use or being built.

3. The summer 2006 comedy animation movie Over The Hedge features a group of forest animals who discover that a tall hedge has appeared while they've been hibernating. RJ the raccoon (Bruce Willis) suggests going over the hedge to scavenge food from humans - but are his motives genuine..?

4. In the ancient world there was no real distinction between mazes and labyrinths. However, today people see a maze as a network of paths and hedges designed as a puzzle through which one has to find a way, while a labyrinth has a single path that winds into the centre and is often circular.

5. The Osage Orange (Maclura pomifera), which is native to southern Oklahoma and northern Texas, is commonly called a hedge tree because it was often planted along farm boundaries.

6. In the Middle Ages, church labyrinths symbolised the tortuous path that good Christians followed towards redemption.

7. In gambling and finance, a hedge is a bet or investment taken to reduce loss if another bet or investment turns out badly.

8. Over the years, a number of publications have been published on the subject of hedges. One of the latest, Hedgerow History: Ecology, History And Landscape Character, by Gerry Barnes, came out in February 2006.

9. A boundary hedge is usually the joint responsibility of both neighbours - and both must agree on major work, such as its removal. However, if a tall hedge puts your garden in the shade, you can cut off branches that overhang your boundary.

10. To "hedge-hop" means to fly an aircraft at a very low altitude.