You need a tool but don't want to buy it.  You have a piece of forestry equipment and wonder if anyone else could use it. You want to know how to sharpen a chainsaw but don't know anyone nearby who could teach you how.  All these and many other problems would be solved if there were a website that put you in touch with neighbours who could help or who need help.  If such a platform existed it would help solve your problem and you would make friends locally.  In fact such a website exists already!   Streetbank.com was established as a not-for-profit enterprise to allow people to share things and skills for no cost, and it really works. Read more...

The soil seed bank refers to the various seeds that are ‘stored’ in the soil of most ecosystems.  Soil seed banks have always attracted interest because of the 'reservoir' of weed seeds in the soil and the economic implications of these.  However, more recently ecologists and conservationists have looked at the role of seed banks in woodland and forest regeneration; and it may be that they can play a role in the rehabilitation of degraded ecosystems. Soil seeds may be placed in one of two broad categories Transient species – where a seed only remains viable within the soil for a short period, perhaps only to the next opportunity for germination.  For most purposes, seeds that remain viable for a year fall into this category i.e. for one germination season. Persistent species – seeds that can remain viable within the soil for a longer period of time.   Those that survive for between 1 and 5 years are termed short term persistent, whilst those that can remain viable for more than a year are termed long term persistent. Read more...

William Shakespeare grew up in a leafy part of the country, Stratford-upon-Avon, and woodlands and forests were a very important part of many of his plays.  Forests were large areas governed by a different set of laws and they could include  marshes, bogs, fen, pasture, cultivated land and woodland.  Famously, Shakespeare made the "moving" of a woodland a pivotal point in his play 'Macbeth' when Birnam wood "moves" to Dunsinane as soldiers use branches as a camouflage in their assault on Macbeth's castle.  But he uses woodland settings in many other plays and the forest carries deeply symbolic meanings Read more...

For many years now,  I have been making Didgeridoos. It all started with a friend of mine, who taught me how to make them. Sadly, he has now passed away, but he has left his legacy with me.  As a hedge-layer, I can gather an abundance of woody material, collecting them from path clearance work, coppicing and other woodland management tasks.  I try to ensure that I keep as environmentally friendly as possible by only taking sticks that are going to be cut out anyway. The development of the Didgeridoo Read more...

In an earlier blog post by Angus (January 2013), he discussed the pros and cons of dredging ponds and lakes.   In this piece I shall describe some of the practical aspects of carrying out the work and some important lessons I learned along the way. Background to the project. We had acquired a new area of woodland in my region and I was familiarising myself with ‘my’ new wood, noting down work that would be required before we could offer any of it for sale. One particular area troubled me; around 2.5 acres of very unkempt, scrubby land with just a few poplars surviving and many more dead trees. This was in complete contrast to the rest of the woodland which was all very well managed. Closer inspection revealed boggy conditions underfoot, with numerous pools of water Read more...

When I mention that this blog involves bangers, steaks and whips then you could be expecting another wonderful culinary creation - in the vein of other blogs on our website, about cooking on a fire within a woodland. However, in reality, it is stakes and it is some of the tools and materials used to create or add to another wonderful creation – your woodland! Tree planting is an intensely wonderful experience – the thought of nurturing you own trees into future giants is nearly akin to bringing up a family, full of delights, fun and hard work at times (especially in the planting, perhaps in both situations). You may be looking to expand your woodland or plant up clearings to give increased biodiversity. Your woodland may be a maturing conifer crop that you wish to thin or clear in order to replant a native broadleaved woodland, or a mix of tree types Read more...