Woodland stewardship

[BJJJ]

I have very recently completed on a wood. There are old sweet chestnut and oaks, and it has been totally unmanaged for some time.

This beech with the huge fungi is still living but has the top blown off by what looks like a lightning strike.
I intend to just use the wood for chilling out and after a full year of observation to start a bit of management to increase the bio-diversity.

I can see any management will be a slow process. Under the canopy the bramble and ferns are rife, but easily pulled up from the deep leaf mold.

I hope to take photographs from each visit to give me a pictorial record of the changes brought on by the seasons.

 

[Bigfoot]

Congratulations on your purchase, that looks terrific. I wish you many happy years looking after it all!

 

[Laurentius]

Am I green with envy? Not arf. It was once my dream to own a piece of woodland, we looked into it seriously in the family, but never found the right place. Now I am having to do everything the hard way and plant trees, while I wait until I am eighty years old to get the benefit of then

 

[woodspirits]

brilliant news Bill! the photos look lovely, please keep them coming. what's the acreage?

 

[Diamond Dave]

That is just fantastic Bill, really nice

 

[Broch]

Ahh, the luxury of flat woodland! Looks great. Is it close to you?

It's a good plan to sit and wait. Increasing bio-diversity of 'pretty' species at the cost of the species already there should be avoided in my opinion. The standard mantra of 'let the light in' can be detrimental to mosses, ferns, liverworts and species that lurk in the dark damp corners of unmanaged woods

Our wood (just over the border) is hillside oak and ash predominantly but it would still be worth comparing notes some time. Have you joined the Small Woods Association in Ironbridge?

 

[Fadcode]

Wish you all the best in your endeavour. But do be careful. A young bushcrafter was killed in a wood in Redruth at the weekend.by a tree falling on him whilst asleep. A lot of our woods and forests due to neglect are very dangerous places

 

[BJJJ]

brilliant news Bill! the photos look lovely, please keep them coming. what's the acreage?

Just 3 acres, enough to manage for a novice like me.

 

[BJJJ]

Ahh, the luxury of flat woodland! Looks great. Is it close to you?

It's a good plan to sit and wait. Increasing bio-diversity of 'pretty' species at the cost of the species already there should be avoided in my opinion. The standard mantra of 'let the light in' can be detrimental to mosses, ferns, liverworts and species that lurk in the dark damp corners of unmanaged woods

Our wood (just over the border) is hillside oak and ash predominantly but it would still be worth comparing notes some time. Have you joined the Small Woods Association in Ironbridge?

I have spoken with the small woods association regarding courses. I found the lady with whom I spoke to be very reticent in giving any information and just intent on getting me to join on line. All a bit off-putting. Unless I can see a benefit from joining other than providing income for them I wouldn't bother. It may be that I asked the wrong questions, but I didn't get anything from the call at all.

 

[Broch]

Not really surprised; they can appear very amateur at times. I wasn't necessarily advocating them just asking if you had joined as they are so close. I've only attended one (free) demo day sponsored by the Forestry Commission which was worthwhile. They are very orientated towards commercial woodland use and do preach the 'let the light in' mantra. Most of the information available is well documented on the web or in books anyway. There are loads of societies and groups that are eager to take your money - I can't see much benefit from any of them to be honest except access to a community that has or had the same issues as I'll experience over the years i.e. people actually doing it instead of lecturing on doing it.

The Small Woodlands Owners Group is free http://www.swog.org.uk/ - you've probably seen that. The magazine is a useful update of what's going on especially news about pests and problems.

Anyway, off-topic really, this is a photography thread!
so, here's mine

 

[Paulm]

Looks lovely Bill

I had a year's free membership to the Royal Forestry Association and the Small Woods Association last year and sadly didn't find them of any use or interest at all during that time, despite hoping to find all sorts of useful courses and information. Didn't bother to pay for the second year !

Despite the shortcomings generally of Facebook groups, the Small Woodland Owners Group (SWOG) is really useful with a lot of professionals and experienced folk freely giving their advice and sharing experiences, well worth joining up, even if generally allergic to FB !!!

Have a look at the differences between ferns and bracken, would be a shame to pull out ferns but bracken of course can be quite invasive. Likewise, too much bramble can be an issue but on the other hand it's a great resource for insects, birds and wildlife, so not all bad necessarily

 

[BJJJ]

Not really surprised; they can appear very amateur at times. I wasn't necessarily advocating them just asking if you had joined as they are so close. I've only attended one (free) demo day sponsored by the Forestry Commission which was worthwhile. They are very orientated towards commercial woodland use and do preach the 'let the light in' mantra. Most of the information available is well documented on the web or in books anyway. There are loads of societies and groups that are eager to take your money - I can't see much benefit from any of them to be honest except access to a community that has or had the same issues as I'll experience over the years i.e. people actually doing it instead of lecturing on doing it.

The Small Woodlands Owners Group is free http://www.swog.org.uk/ - you've probably seen that. The magazine is a useful update of what's going on especially news about pests and problems.

Anyway, off-topic really, this is a photography thread!
so, here's mine

View attachment 50135

View attachment 50136

Lovely photographs, I do follow the SWOG on facebook and find it quire refreshing with some really enthusiastic people.

 

[BJJJ]

Looks lovely Bill

I had a year's free membership to the Royal Forestry Association and the Small Woods Association last year and sadly didn't find them of any use or interest at all during that time, despite hoping to find all sorts of useful courses and information. Didn't bother to pay for the second year !

Despite the shortcomings generally of Facebook groups, the Small Woodland Owners Group (SWOG) is really useful with a lot of professionals and experienced folk freely giving their advice and sharing experiences, well worth joining up, even if generally allergic to FB !!!

Have a look at the differences between ferns and bracken, would be a shame to pull out ferns but bracken of course can be quite invasive. Likewise, too much bramble can be an issue but on the other hand it's a great resource for insects, birds and wildlife, so not all bad necessarily

I am leaving all the undergrowth alone around the perimeter and only clearing where I need paths to access areas. Loads of blackberries at the moment.

 

[BJJJ]

Don't think that's a squirrel behind the top of the tree.

 

[woodspirits]

Just 3 acres, enough to manage for a novice like me.

Perfect size for immersing yourself in nature

 

[MartinK9]

brilliant news Bill! the photos look lovely, please keep them coming. what's the acreage?

+ 1 to that.

Looks a lovely place to hang out.

 

[BJJJ]

one of the tracks I have just cleared of bramble and fern.

The track goes into a conifer ring, evidence of owls and sparrowhawks. plucked feathers and owl pellets.

A KD bespoke fire pit with pot hangers made from 3 m/m steel . all finished and tidy now.

The outer edge of the conifers, all the rest is broadleaf. No undergrowth at all in here.

 

[Sundowner]

Looks brilliant, following this thread with great interest

 

[BJJJ]

Fire pit ready for use and tidy.

 

[slowworm]

Any idea what the conifers are?

I found it fairly useful to write a management plan for my woodland using the free myForest system - https://sylva.org.uk/myforest/