-         more readily available

-         cheaper, though being more bulky you have to compare carefully  the transport costs.

-         they take much less time to season (dry out), typically 6 months rather than the two years needed for hardwoods

Whilst softwoods are lighter, their calorific value (how much heat they give off) is generally the same as that of hardwoods on a weight for weight basis.  All current log-fuel burning equipment works well with either hardwood or softwood logs, or a mixture.

This is good news for many owners of small woodlands because very often for management reasons you will want to take out softwoods planted in the 1960s and 1970s or simply thin them out.  It is often hard to find a good market for such timber (especially lodgepole pine and spruce) so being able to use it for firewood can be a great help.  Prices of all firewood have been rising over the last couple of years and, because it is a retails market, it is less susceptible to swings in prices.  Of course if you are using firewood form your own woodland you are immune to changes in market prices.

 Demand for firewood is currently growing rapidly, illustrated by the fact that domestic demand for wood-burning stoves in 2009 is said to be 50% above the level of 2008.

 In terms of drying out, the moisture content of log fuel should be 20% or less.  If you burn wetter material there are various risks – it can corrode equipment and the chimney and lead to reduced heat output .  If you have a stove it may be worth getting a meter for checking how dry your logs are.  There is a selection of these meters available on Amazon which range in cost from £25 to £65.   One UK source of moisture meters is stovesonline.co.uk where meters cost about £32:

http://www.stovesonline.co.uk/firewood-moisture-meter.html

Lots more discussions, demos and tips at http://www.woodlandstv.co.uk/

 During the Stone Age flint was worked to create arrowheads for hunting and warfare.  Flint-headed arrows were used to hunt deer and wild cattle at a range of about 20 metres.  These wounded the animals rather than killing them instantly, and the hunters would follow the trail of blood until they caught up with the exhausted animal and finished it off.  In times of war, flint arrows could travel as far as 200 metres. 

Flint knappers use pieces of stone, wood, bone or antler to chip off flakes of flint, creating flat-faced stones with multiple uses.  Anyone can have a go at flint knapping, but it can be dangerous as it involves razor-sharp stone and dust so it’s important to wear gloves and goggles and to supervise children carefully. It can, however, be a wonderful way to recreate a bit of ancient history in a woodland if you live in an area where there are flints.

If you are interested in learning more, there are various courses to teach flint-knapping in woodlands around the country.  One such course is Will Lord’s course in Kent .  The website address is: www.natural-pathways.co.uk/flint-knapping.php .  You can even buy a gift voucher – an unusual birthday present perhaps?

One very expert flint knapper is Allan Course, who replicates Stone Age tools and weapons in order to understand more about the past.  Allan runs flint-knapping courses in the spring and summer, which he holds outdoors at a friend’s farm in Sussex. You can read more about him at  http://guswatson.com/stoneage.html .

You can also watch Phil Harding creating an axe head with flint knapping techniques here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sim6tAFqvvU

Their hugely successful efforts have been widely publicised, but over the same period the recovery in the numbers of another British bird of prey has been equally, if not more impressive, especially since the species has achieved this remarkable renaissance with just one vital piece of human intervention.

This fact was again excitingly illustrated last summer when a pair of sparrowhawks set up home for the first time in a small South East Cornwall coniferous wood, parts of which were recently sold by Woodlands.co.uk.

 The hawks successfully raised five young, despite building their nest literally feet from one of the busiest ‘A‘ roads in Cornwall.

The couple who recently bought half the wood were thrilled to learn that with luck, the sparrowhawks will return this year, and the new owners will be able to witness at close hand a sight that would have been unthinkable 30 or 40 years ago.

 Then, the widespread use of certain agricultural chemicals was making sparrowhawk eggs incredibly fragile, resulting in a massive decline in the reproductive success of the birds and, consequently, their numbers. The threat of extinction in the UK was a very real one.

 Under pressure, the government eventually stepped in and banned the offending substances. Gradually, the birds returned to the areas where they once flourished, and there are now reckoned to be about 30,000 pairs.

 Sparrowhawks still arouse plenty of controversy, not least because they often take small birds. But I would refer anyone who believes they represent a threat to some of our best-loved songsters to a well-documented study of an Oxfordshire wood  which revealed that the numbers of small prey birds remained exactly the same when sparrowhawks temporarily disappeared during the ‘crisis’ and did NOT decrease when they eventually returned.

For me, there is no finer sight in this country than a sparrowhawk flying low along a narrow country road, or circling high up in a clear sky, as they often do in the spring.

 I know the couple who have invested in that little wood will agree with me when they find out just what a marvellous bird they have living in their patch of green heaven…

Please make sure you check with the training supplier for times, dates,  prices and availability.

Woodland Management

BTCV offer a range of woodland management & practical skills courses.  See their website for details.

The Greenwood Centre at Ironbridge are running various courses in woodland management and related subjects, including:

OCN Hedgelaying – 15-19 Feb

OCN Introduction to Small Woodland Management – 17-18 April

With WoodNet:

Emergency First Aid for Farmers & Foresters – 11 Feb

Introduction to Chainsaw Use & Maintenance – 5 Mar

Introduction to Tree Climbing – 11 Mar

Practical Wood Management Using Hand Tools – 18 Mar

With the Field Studies Council:

Woodland Conservation & Management – 9-13 April

Site Surveys for Biological Surveying – 6-9 April & 21-24 May

NVC: Woodlands – 14-17 May

Archaeology

With WoodNet .  Essential for all those who’ve been following David Brown’s archaeology blog on Woodlands.co.uk:
Woodland Archaeology with David Brown – 10 Feb

Coppicing

Coppicing at the Greenwood Centre – 13-14 Mar

Charcoal

Charcoal Making with WoodNet – 29 Jan
WoodfuelWoodfuel:  Making the Switch, WoodNet – 24 Feb

Flora & Fauna

With Kent Wildlife Trust:

Badgers – 17 Feb

Bees & Beekeeping – 15 April

Dawn Chorus Walk – 18 April & 15 May

Trees & Early Spring Birds (walk) – 24 May

Bluebell Walk at Cole Wood West – 24 May

The Woodland Year – 10 May

Wildlife at the Warren – 29 May

With the Field Studies Council:

Arboriculture & Bats – 15 Feb & 8 Mar

Identifying Lichens – 19-21 Mar & 5-12 Apr

Special Spring Moths – 5-10 Apr

Bats & Bat Surveys – 12-14 Apr

Woodland Plants – 14-17 May

Butterfly & Moth Identification – 28 May-3 Jun

Fungi Foray with the Greenwood Centre – 11 Oct

Woodworking & Craft Skills

At the Field Studies Council, A Week of Willow Basketry – 26 Feb- 4 Mar

At the Greenwood Centre:

Wooden Hazel Hurdles (Sheep Hurdles) – 17-18 April

Sussex Trug Making – 1-2 May

Longbow Making – 26-28 May

Welsh Stick Back Chair Making – 5-10 June

Cleft Wood Gate Making – 19-20 June

With WoodNet :

Hazel Hurdle Making – 19 Mar

Willow Structures – 9 April

Introduction to Green Woodworking – 29 April

Trees

With the Field Studies Council:

Identifying Trees without Leaf – 24 Jan

Trees & Woodland in the British Landscape with Oliver Rackham – 6-11 April  

Understanding Trees – 7-9 May

The Natural History of Veteran Trees – 8 May

Big Tree Country:  Introduction to Tree Identification – 14-17 May

Big Tree Country:  Tree Identification for Improvers – 17-21 May

Veteran Trees with Kent Wildlife Trust – 24 Oct

Photography

Advanced Wildlife Photography with Kent Wildlife Trust – 11th July

David Plummer runs photography courses for all levels of expertise in and around East Sussex and at his own woodland with opportunities for photographing both flora and fauna.  Details on his website at www.davidplummerimages.co.uk/courses.html

 
Art

There are courses on Botanical Illustration for various degrees of experience at the Field Studies Council  

Walking with a Sketchbook at the Field Studies Council – 28-30 May

Drawing & Painting Birds & Other Wildlife – 2-6 June

Hedgerows

Field & hedgerow survey techniques with Kent Wildlife Trust – 12th Sep

Bushcraft

Down2Earth run various bushcraft and survival skills courses in South East Wales.  Contact them through their website for more details: www.down2earthsurvival.com

Lots more discussions, demos and tips at http://www.woodlandstv.co.uk/

We asked you to identify the different activities in the pictures below.  From top to bottom and right to left the pictures demonstrate:

Row 1:  making a cup of tea (Kelly Kettle); orienteering; trout tickling; beekeeping

Row 2:  spoon carving; horse logging; making sloe gin; basket weaving

Row 3:  baking bannock bread; using a pole lathe (green woodworking); traditional firewood (pimps); making paling for fencing.

You can find out more about all these and lots more activities in our blog and at www.woodlandstv.co.uk

December

The Diary may have finished,  but the work and enjoyment continue. Heather and Rodney are keen members of the Small Woodland Owners Group (www.SWOG.org.uk) and sometimes give us updates, and even invite members to meetings in their wood.  http://www.swog.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2009/11/swog-newsletter-nov-09.pdf . There are lots more woodland owners in SWOG – you can join for free, see the monthly newsletter, get information about meetings,  and keep in touch with the world of small woodlands.

Missed some previous months?  Read the whole diary here …

Introduction

January

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Lots more discussions, demos and tips at http://www.woodlandstv.co.uk/

This is my first blog in the series called Seasons. As a local photographer based in Witham, Essex I have recently started to photograph the woodlands in the surrounding areas. Born and raised in South Africa, over the past 15 years I enjoyed many disciplines in photography as an amateur photographer, however my passion lies with nature, landscape and lifestyle photography.  I can honestly say that it was Oaters Wood that inspired me to take up photography in earnest.

Whilst driving past Oaters Wood one sunny morning in spring, I could not help but stop and capture the breathtaking display of bluebells. Four rolls of film later and I was hooked!

On a recent walk through the woods I was amazed to discover a totally different side to Oaters Wood with its beautiful display of autumn colours. All different shades of brown, orange, green, yellow and red make up a spectacular visual display.

 Walking through the woods you get the feeling that this is a very special place. As you stand quietly and listen you can almost hear the ancient oaks sigh as the wind rustles through their leaves and you cannot but wonder what stories they have to tell about generations past.

With the leaves falling from the trees you feel as if walking on a soft leafy carpet, dotted with splashes of spongy green moss.  The wood has hidden treasures around every corner … lovely mature ferns in shades of green and brown with oaks, hornbeam, sweet chestnut and ash making up this wonderful varied deciduous woodland. Here and there you will see the appearance of the occasional conifer tree. It is also a haven for various different species of fungi (for example, Coprinus Micaceus – The Glistening Ink Cap) growing from tree stumps and fallen branches – these are noticeable in abundance.

As you walk down the track further into the woods you get a sense of peace and tranquillity. A grey squirrel made its’ appearance  - but perhaps suffered from a mild case of stage fright and decided to high tail it out of there. Maybe another day … In the meantime, please read the blog by Mike posted on 26 September 2006 about some interesting facts on the red and grey squirrel. http://www.woodlands.co.uk/blog/conservation/red-squirrel-grey-squirrel/

I look forward photographing the woods in Winter, in Spring and in Summer and to tell you a bit more about the seasonal changes of the wood. This is truly a wonderful place that should be preserved and protected for generations to come.

Should you be interested to view and/or purchase any of the photographs taken at Oaters Wood, please visit my website at www.natalibrownphotography.com or contact me direct on 07939 107638.

To see all of Natali’s Autumn photos of Oaters Wood click on the slideshow above.  You can watch in full screen mode by clicking on the icon in the bottom right-hand corner.

There are more woodlands like this one for sale at this location.  For more details visit the East Anglia  section of our website.