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"Ironically, the hedgehog obstacles that littered the beaches would later be used to help Allied tanks break through the numerous hedgerows that crisscrossed the Normandy countryside. Cut up and welded to the front of tanks, these chunks of metal allowed armor to rapidly slice through the hedgerows and quicken the Allied attack inland."

Max Hastings writes about this. In the early stages of the battle neither the German nor Allied armor could penetrate the Normandy hedgerows, restricting armor movement to the roads. A single Panther could make advance by road impossible.

When a tank tried to cross a hedgerow the trees and brush, building up underneath the tank, would lift up hard enough so that the tank would loose traction and be stuck (and a sitting duck). Clearing an opening in the hedgerow by hand was impossible because of MG42 fire, natch.

Guys in the field came up with the fix. Steel beams were welded to the front of M4s, pointing forward, about 30" long. These beams had two more beams welded to the front of the first beam, sweeping back, in a Vee shape with an included angle of about 60 degrees. These things looked just like the little arrowheads one draws on one's notes for emphasis, or to find your way around your notes later.

The tank so equipped would push into the hedgerow, get the trees and bushes all snagged onto the apparatus welded on front, and then back out, pulling the hedgerow trees with it. If the opening was still blocked, another similar machine would pull out the rest of the obstacle.

Now the Shermans could get around to the back of the Panthers and destroy them. The Germans never copied this American improvisation, for whatever reasons, probably cultural.

The Germans are no smarter than anyone else. Ask any Pole or Russian, and you will get a strong opinion in this matter!