Autumn is here, whether you follow the definition of meteorological autumn, which starts on the first of September or the astronomical autumn which starts at the autumn equinox.  The equinox is when day and night length are equal, after that time the days get shorter. Or it might be that you are noting the signs of the seasons changing.  The BBC, the Woodland Trust and Nature’s Calendar chart the advance of autumn by recording events in the life of key species, for example blackberry, hawthorn, swifts, conkers, ivy and oak.  The information collected helps build a picture of how climate change is affecting the time of flowering, fruiting  etc. of many species. The blog has already commented on the early flowering of the blackberries but now woodlands are starting to transform into a mosaic of reds, yellows, and oranges as the leaves prepare to be shed and the woodland floor becomes a fungal jungle, (as Jasper has described). Hawthorn, Blackthorn and other bushes are laden with berries, conkers and acorns will be strewn across woodland floors. Squirrels eat hazelnuts (and hide some of them as a winter food store).  This banquet of fruits and seeds may be a response to the long, hot and very dry summer we have just experienced.  Trees and shrubs have been stressed by the heat and drought. Some have responded by mobilising their reserves / efforts into producing more fruits and seeds, to ensure that they pass on their genes to the next generation.   [caption id="attachment_24651" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Sloes on Blackthorn[/caption] If it seems like you have been noticing more acorns on the trees than normal that could be down to a "mast year”. Mast years occur roughly every five to ten years and refer to years when certain species of trees Like oak & beech) and shrubs produce a larger than normal crop of berries, nuts and fruit.  This boost in production means far more is produced than can be eaten  by the usual herbivores, squirrels, dormice etc, thus ensuring at least some of the mast goes on to grow new plants.  However, this ‘over-production’ can come at a cost to the tree, using vital resources so that growth in the subsequent year may be reduced.  Quite what causes trees and shrubs to ‘go mad’ and overproduce is not known but some theories are explored in a previous blog, though the weather in Spring is an important factor. [caption id="attachment_42689" align="aligncenter" width="675"] Collecting acorns.[/caption]

Lisa Bradford and her husband Paul run Willow Bushcraft a non-for-profit enterprise. They borrow a woodland in Kent owned by Woodlands.co.uk, and here Lisa writes about making a “Bender Chair”. Crafting a Masterpiece: This is how two students built a unique “Bender Chair” from hazel wood.    Creativity and craftsmanship came together in an extraordinary project undertaken by two dedicated students from a local school. These two students find it difficult in a mainstream school setting so attend a unit attached to the school. Over the course of a term, the two students transformed raw hazel rods into a stunning bender chair, showcasing both their hard work and newfound woodworking skills. The Inspiration for this journey began with a simple yet ambitious idea: to create a piece of furniture using traditional woodworking techniques. Inspired by Ben Law’s Woodland Craft book the natural beauty and flexibility of hazel wood, the students decided to build a bender chair. This type of chair, known for its distinctive curved lines and rustic charm, became the perfect canvas for their creative efforts.  The process involved coppicing hazel rods which had to be gathered from the woods. Both students learned the ancient technique of coppicing, a sustainable method of harvesting wood that encourages new growth. They explored March Wood, in Kent, to select and cut the perfect hazel rods, each one carefully chosen for its flexibility and strength.Next they assembled the chair by spending a couple of hours every week to their project, working with patience and precision. They crafted the frame first, measuring and cutting the hazel to size and ensuring the frame was sturdy and well-balanced. Week by week, the chair started to take shape. With their hazel rods in hand, the chair-makers began the meticulous process of shaping the chair. This involved bending the freshly cut rods into the desired forms for the seat, back, and armrests and tacking them into place. After weeks of diligent work, the students finally completed their bender chair. The result was nothing short of remarkable. The chair, with its gracefully curved lines and natural finish, was a testament to their hard work and creativity.  But the project provided the students with more than just a beautiful piece of furniture: it was a learning experience that taught them valuable skills in woodworking. More importantly, it gave them a profound sense of achievement and pride. They had started with a vision and, through perseverance and teamwork, brought that vision to life. Looking back on their journey, the students expressed immense satisfaction. They had not only learned about woodworking but also about the importance of patience, attention to detail, and sustainable practices. Their success with the bender chair has inspired them to take on more projects, and they hope to continue exploring the world of traditional craftsmanship. Forest Schools such as Willow Bushcraft are brilliant for hard-to-reach students who struggle in traditional classroom settings, and participating in forest school offers a transformative experience. Immersed in the natural environment, these students engage in hands-on, practical projects that ignite their curiosity and foster a sense of achievement. The forest school setting allows them to learn through doing, tapping into their innate creativity and problem-solving skills. This alternative educational approach not only enhances their self-esteem and confidence but also helps them develop essential life skills such as teamwork, perseverance, and adaptability. The “bender chair” demonstrates how outdoor learning can inspire a love for learning in even the most disengaged students.

Woodlands.co.uk is 'republishing' this blog, as contact details for the Jones family are now available and several people have expressed an interest in having a walking stick 'custom made'.  The blog originally appeared in 2014. Contact email address is pj451324(at)gmail.com Peter Jones and his sons make walking sticks on a serious scale using sticks they come across in the woods, where they do their forestry work.  They use chestnut, silver birch, oak and hazel.  But they avoid using willow, as it goes brittle once it's aged.  Apart from finding the right stick to work on they need a steamer for bending the tops of the walking sticks and a good supply of sealant and varnish for protecting the finished sticks. "Honeysuckle makes the best twist sticks" advises out Peter Jones, who comes across a lot of twisted stems in Kent and East Sussex.  As a result, he is able to trade these with fellow stick makers in more northern English areas - they give him carved tops for walking sticks in exchange for good twisted shanks.  But even among twisted sticks there is variety: the slower growing trees such as holly and oak twist more slowly whilst the fast-growing chestnut twists quickly.  Though he also corrected me pointing out that the maker of walking sticks should really be called a "stick dresser" Read more...

They grow in dense overlapping tiers on dead stumps and branches, the felty topside of these semi-circular shelves primarily an orange to tawny brown colour demarcated to form zones of different colours, including a rather striking blue in places, and tending towards white at the edges. The Crimped Gill, or Plicatura crispa (also Plicaturopsis crispa), does indeed from such descriptions, sound remarkably similar to the Turkey Tails described in last month’s post. In these winter months when bracket fungi are plentiful in our woodlands, there are a good number of fungi that might be confused with Turkey Tails, in fact, from the False Turkey Tails and Hairy Curtain Crusts described last month, through the Tripe Fungus covered in a Fungi Focus from last February and other lookalike species such as the Smokey Bracket (Bjerkandera adusta).  Read more...

Checking through my emails, I came across a link sent by a friend to one of the winter talks in the program offered by the Botanical Society of Scotland - specifically “The Scottish Uplands: how to revive a degraded landscape” by Dr Helen Armstrong.  The talk was live-streamed but was also recorded and is available here.   Dr Armstrong spent 24 years at the Nature Conservancy Council, the Macaulay Land Use Research Institute, Scottish Natural Heritage and Forest Research carrying out research and advisory work. The following is an attempt to summarise some of the key features of her informative and enlightening talk. Read more...

Hazels belong to the genus - Corylus, which in turn belongs to the Betulaceae [the birch family].  There are a number of different species within the genus Corylus and a variety of cultivars. The common or European Hazel is named C.avellana; after the Italian town of Avella.  In the past, the hazel was much grown for coppice, indeed in 1905 it is thought that there were some half a million acres of hazel coppice (Mabberley's Plant Book, 3rd Edition 2008).  Its wood / poles was used in the making of hurdles, legume poles, wattle and daub.  Hazel was also much favoured as a rod for water divining. The hazel was also a source of hazelnuts - the fruit of the tree.  The flowers are produced early in the year in the form of long catkins - the male flowers (see image below).  The female flowers are small, red, ‘bud-like’ structures (image below).  The redness being largely due to the protruding styles (which receive the pollen).  Pollination is anemophilous - i.e. by the wind.   Read more...

Having put in place the basic infrastructure so that I can store tools, equipment and firewood and have somewhere for shelter and to work, my attention turned to the top two priorities on my ‘to do’ list – well actually, numbers 2 and 3, number one will always remain ‘relax, do nothing and just enjoy it’. Firstly there is a semi-circular clearing near the eastern side of what is essentially a triangular plot. I have planted a ‘family copse’ Read more...

Finally, it seems like spring has sprung and more people are getting out into the woods. What better way is there to enjoy your time then to be able to make yourself a hot drink on an open fire? Today I’ll show you the way I make an adjustable pot hanger set for cooking and boiling water over a small open fire. Tools: Tools needed for this are pretty simple really, a saw and a knife. A Bahco Laplander folding saw works well and a fixed blade knife is preferable for jobs like this. I’m using a custom made tang knife by a company called Stoney Paths. Materials: I am using green wood as it’s easier to carve and won’t burn as easily and have gone with Hazel. You will need: One long straight pole thumb thick and two/three feet long, one Y-shaped piece around 'thumb thick', and 2 “7” sticks (a piece off a branch that looks a little like a number 7 shape). Read more...