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Blog - firewood

The management of Swiss forests.

The management of Swiss forests.

by Angus, 31 October, 2013, 3 comments

Meeting a Swiss forester this week, in the canton of Vaud, I asked if he could show me how local community forests are managed.  To my surprise, he immediately invited me to come and see an woodland area where a team of forestry workers were cutting various hardwoods.  My guide appeared quite informal but he was certainly not taking any risks as he handed me all the safety kit - a fluorescent jacket and a protective helmet attached to a visor and ear defenders. Read more...
Splitting firewood logs, using a hand-held logsplitter

Splitting firewood logs, using a hand-held logsplitter

by Angus, 27 September, 2013, 5 comments

Many woodland owners get firewood from their woodland for stoves at home. Cutting the wood is important but splitting it into useable pieces can be a real challenge.  There are powerful electric machines to do it such as the hydraulic splitters (one described here) or you can split it by hand.  If you want to avoid using a traditional axe or a similar tool a good alternative is the logmatic wedge axe. With this log splitter you place the point where you want the log to split and push the handle down with an energetic thrust.  This sends a strong hammer blow Read more...
Knight Tree Services : growing their tree surgery business

Knight Tree Services : growing their tree surgery business

by Angus, 13 September, 2013, 0 comments

"Work has really picked up recently," says John Rathbone, co-owner of knightstreeservices.co.uk "We've had new contracts doing roadside work for Flintshire Council and clearing for the local powerline company and for private individuals. So much so that we've bought a new tracked chipper to go with the 12 inch chipper attached to our unimog. Mind you, every time you get new kit you need specialist training. For us, most of our training is at Llysfasi College and we all have regularly to update our first aid and chainsaw certificates." John points out that things are changing in the tree services sector: equipment is getting better with their chainsaws now having self-tuning so that a manual choke isn't needed. Read more...
French Forestry

French Forestry

by Angus, 24 May, 2012, 10 comments

French forestry - six times as big as British Forestry If you drive through France on the toll motorways ("peages") you will have seen woodlands through the car window and may have wondered how the French organise their forestry.   Not only do they do things differently but they do forestry on a much larger scale than the UK.  France itself is more than 2.5 times as big as Britain in area and its woodland cover is much greater.  The French have 28% tree cover whereas the UK is only about 12% wooded.  The effect of a larger country with denser tree cover is that the french forestry sector is over six times as large as UK forestry.  You can get a feel for this larger size when you consider that one French forest alone (Foret des Landes in Aquitane near Bordeaux) is as big as 50% of all UK forestry combined.  It covers 12,600 square kilometres (about 112 kilometres by 112 km) and contains vast areas of maritime pine and scots pine and is a favoured location for free-range chickens. Read more...
Woodfuel Strategy

Woodfuel Strategy

by Bruce Richardson, 4 February, 2011, 2 comments

  I am a forestry student from the University of Wales (Bangor) and am writing a dissertation on the implementation of the England Woodfuel Strategy 2007. The strategy claims that only about 40% of the potential annual harvest from England’s woodlands is actually harvested, and that if 50% of this under-harvested woodland is brought into management then an additional 2 million tonnes of woodfuel could be produced annually, equivalent to the energy needs of 250,000 homes. Read more...
Firewood

Firewood

by Jonathan, 13 March, 2009, 13 comments

According to folklore firewood will heat you three times:  When you cut and extract it, When you split and store it, When you carry and burn it.  A wood fire can cook food, act as a focal point, or heat one room or an entire house.  In the wider picture, the careful and efficient use of firewood, a carbon neutral resource, can also contribute to reducing our dependence on fossil fuels and reduce global warming provided it is sourced, managed and transported sustainably. Read more...

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