I arrived nice and early yesterday and the sun was out. I knew the woods would have changed significantly since my last visit almost two weeks ago. The canopy has closed over, the groundcover is shooting up and it’s getting to be a pretty dark place in some areas. So many different types of insects were flying and landing all around and there are signs of new life in some of the bird nest boxes. I spotted Blue Tits in and out of three boxes feeding their young. A hollow, low down in a tree, has it’s usual Great Tit residents but the parent was still sitting on the eggs. The bluebells are on their way out, the wild garlic in full flower and the brambles and nettles are outstripping their rivals in the race for light and water. On the whole, it’s an incredibly busy place for nature right now and one of the best times to be there.

The hazel coppice is now a light and sunny place compared to when I first bought the woods. The saplings I transplanted into a nursery area there are looking good and the wild garlic is flourishing here.

After an hour and a half of wandering around my four acre plot, simply observing and taking in the splendour of nature at full throttle, I set-to, finishing the job of re-roofing the shelter with corrugated plastic. I had some tricky pieces to cut and shape around two small oak trees which are corner supports. The plastic is incredibly hard to work with, tending to crack (it’s old but was a gift) and trying to measure and mark the shape to be cut is largely guesswork. Anyhow I got there but it still needs some tweaking, then I can start rebuilding the sides. Will post photos next visit. The mosquitos positively love it, but I kept covered up as much as possible and smeared myself with repellent and I seem to have escaped with no bites this time.

In some areas there are lots of clumps of grass-like plants which are on the increase and looking lush at the moment. I say grass-like because some are sedges and not grass but most people think they are all grasses. I was told a sort of poem to help identify between rushes, sedges and grasses which all look similar but are different species. It’s to do with the shape of the stalks. Rushes around, sedges have edges, and grasses are hollow right up to their knees. (O.K. it doesn’t actually rhyme). A little bit of explanation might help too. Rushes – well they are completely round, all the way up. Sedges are triangular in cross section so have three edges but do look very much like grasses but the lower part of grasses are round and hollow, until they break out into flat leaves and there is a sort of knuckle (like a knee). Now you can sleep easily knowing the difference. It took this photo for ID purposes. There seems to be three different types of plant growing next to each other. The big one in the middle is Wood Sedge I believe. Not sure about the ones either side.

I had a nice surprise in the afternnoon. My eldest daughter and partner came over and we had a packed lunch together. I gave them my usual tour and we filled their car boot with logs for their chimenea back home and some hazel sticks for their allotment. Nice to be able to use some of the products from the coppicing and felling.

I’ll leave you with this shot of the area where I felled the sycamore in winter to create an open coup for replanting with other species. You can see the difference in light levels, between the dense plantation behind and the open area in the foreground (even though it’s in shade in the photos). You can also see the remaining bluebells and the newly emerging ferns. I will need to keep a check on the brambles as they will love the extra light too. Next visit should be a camping trip.