It’s been a poor winter so far for visits to the woods due to all the storms. So I’m behind in my plans for coppicing and thinning and was raring to get in there and do some work. Yesterday was the tail-end of storm Henry but the forecast looked mainly dry so I headed off nice and early. The tall plantation trees were clapping about in the wind which is a bit unnerving. Early signs of spring are all around and the bluebells are poking through nicely. I decided to try to finish off the thinning necessary in the S.W. corner for the newly coppiced hazel and clear up some of the big piles of brash I had left. There were three small sycamore and one ash tree to fell. I am pleased to say all four fell where I wanted them to with little damage to other nearby trees. This small coppiced area looked like a bomb site with logs and branches strewn everywhere so what to do with it?

Traditionally it would have been burnt but I’m not keen to do that. The branches are still green so would either need to stand several months to dry out, or require a big hot fire to drive out the moisture. The consequences of that are masses of smoke and damage to the ground underneath. So my solution is to use it to make brash or “dead” hedges. I’ve mentioned these before and there are several benefits. It creates an interesting feature which provides a home and cover for many different forms of wildlife. A robin kept me company while I was making it and might even use it for nesting with a bit of luck. It was hard physical work for my old body but hugely satisfying. I love throwing logs around and pushing and tugging at awkward straggly branches and organising them into some sort of rough order that can be seen as visual evidence of your hard work.

So most of the day was spent this way with a little leisure time in between to wander around, formulate future plans, see what’s been happening since last time etc. I spotted a very clear roe deer footprint. It was on an old mole hill that I had stepped on last time and my footprint was still visible. Quite an odd but nice feeling to know that the deer had stepped in exactly the same spot as me. Yeah it sounds a bit sentimental and soppy but really it’s more about feeling that connection with nature. I keep saying this to people who ask “well what do you do in the woods and why did you want one?” When you switch on your senses and really open yourself up to the natural surroundings, observing the signs of other life forms, you start to feel that connection. We are not apart from nature – we are a part of nature and we share it with all living things and that’s why we have to look after our planet and this is a small part I can play in that process. To be the guardian of that small piece of wildlife is incredibly rewarding as a human being. I hope that what I do there during my time will improve it in some small measure. Until next time here are a few more photos.