What's the best way of preventing roe deer from eating the new shoots on my three-years old hawthorn hedge?

I planted a hawthorn hedge in spring 2005 and its development is constantly being retarded by the local itinerant roe deer population browsing the tender young shoots each spring and summer. Short of ereecting an eaight foot high fence on both sides, how can I deter these unwelcome nightly visitations?