THERE’s a lot of work to do in tree planting at this time of the year. But our volunteers are also out and about helping with the very important jobs in woodland management.
With some of the team out planting recently above Gilsland, we have also been working in the woods at Horsley, Priestfield Wood, and Shilbottle. Horsley lies between Wylam and Ovingham, Shilbottle Colliery Woods are the site of a former colliery in Northumberland, three miles south-east of Alnwick, and Priestfield Wood is at Gateshead.
When we are coppicing we’re using an ancient technique which involves cutting back trees at the base of the trunk or stool, causing multiple new shoots to grow up towards the light. The process is repeated every seven years or so, by which time the now substantial ‘new’ shoots are removed as useful woodland material.
Last week we could really see the progress we’re making with the copse. As we are working over a seven-year cycle, it means there is always succession of growth, benefiting biodiversity And when we come back to this area in seven years time we will be able to harvest more useful material here to support local and traditional skills such as stakes for hedgelaying, bean poles for allotments, weavers for natural screens and fencing and charcoal.
Reducing the carbon impact from imported materials otherwise used. It also means we get to gain of the benefits of being out in the woods, breathing in those natural phytocides – compounds given out from the tree which support our immune system, physical and mental health. For more information about forest bathing see here.