MARKE TS T IMBE R Rolled saplings


Andy Hyde has a nifty tip for saving surplus young trees


H


wood from the forest to the sawmill is fraught with challenges. Mobile mills are one obvious solution that overcomes the obstacle of harvesting enough good timber to justify the effort and cost of scouting a woodland, getting the trees felled and left roadside, and collecting them by large lorry. One alternative is to use a mobile mill that is taken to the woodland and in planking the timber you add value to the timber and make it more portable. “If you can find someone with a mobile mill they will usually leave the timber on the land,” says Hugh Smart, who occasionally comes across stacks of boards on farms. “The trouble is that they cut any old tree into any old thickness, and store it any old way. It doesn’t work. They’re trying to add value to the trees but without the knowledge.”


Forming syndicates It’s not all doom for woodland owners. “I reckon there’s potential in small private woodlands,” says Hugh Smart, “and there must be a way of harvesting it. Perhaps they need to work as a syndicate, with say a dozen woods within a six mile radius. That way haulage isn’t a problem, the money is more realistic, and you don’t have to cream one small wood.” What happens next is also critical


Hugh Smart says. “If you selectively fell 30-40 qood quality trees in a woodland, and leave it to regenerate naturally, there may not be enough


14 Smallwoods Spring 2010


light and it will become shrubland unless forestry practices are followed, with different levels of life for generations ahead.” Hugh Smart’s business is primarily in oak, but the other sawmills searching for timber-quality trees will be driven by similar economics. To harness the trees growing on farms and ‘independent’ private land perhaps we have to accept that the route to market is still dominated by the large estates, which can benefit from long-term management by long-term owners. They can afford to employ a forester, funded by a combination of timber and firewood sales (within and beyond the estate), by management of the woods for shooting, by the very size of an estate, and by a philanthropic interest in trees and conservation. It is much more challenging for


owners of small woodlands to see how they can sustain their woods and justify their existence. Without


Oak logs


roadside in the New Forest (top) and a Valmet forwarder extracting logs


any commercial incentive their management is largely or solely driven by passion for biodiversity and conservation, and a desire to enjoy the space. Like it or not, money (whether in cash or barter) is a universal need, and formal or informal management plans that aren’t in any way driven by a financial return risk collapse if future generations don’t share the aims and objectives of the original planners. If we admit defeat that small woodlands can’t pay on their own, there is a risk that we ignore our role as curators or 'parents' of woodlands in waiting.


Tell us about your experiences attempting to sell wood for timber from your woodland.


Free marketing guide


Small Woods produces a free booklet for owners and managers of woodlands to help identify ways to market their products and services. It shows how to assess your wood, how to develop a business plan and what opportunities there are for non-wood products and services. Call 01952 432769 for a free copy.


www.smallwoods.org.uk www.smallwoods.org.uk


aving completed a tree- planting job, there are usually a few trees left over. This is a method that can be


used to extend the planting season so that the surplus can be used, for instance, to replace a few failures. As a firm root slab is produced, these trees can be planted without root damage, during the growing season like plug-raised plants.


Cut a piece of opaque sheet plastic (silage sheet) about 60cm wide and 3-4m long. This will accommodate about 15 trees depending on their size, but beware of making the roll too large and heavy, as it will become very unwieldy and difficult to move. Spread a layer of leaf-mould loam


‘compost’ (about 50:50) on the top half of the plastic. Lay out the trees over the compost leaving room for the roots to expand, without growing into each other. Spread more compost over the roots, and fold up the lower half of the plastic. Fold the ends in to enclose the roots and compost. Roll the whole thing up like a big swiss- roll and tie firmly with string. Before standing the roll upright,


stab plenty of holes in the base for drainage. Monitor the roll regularly in dry weather and water as necessary. If planting in warm weather, water the roll in advance, to help keep the root slab moist (but not wet and heavy), and slide each tree into a spade slit in the usual way. Firm the tree in well and water if conditions are dry.


Line the saplings up on opaque plastic sheeting covered in leaf mould


Rolled up young trees should be watered, but can be kept for planting into the year


P LANT ING TRE ECARE


February Seasonal suggestions from Ben Law's book


According to Ben Law's book, The Woodland Year, February is the right month to be tapping birch trees for sap. He recommends tapping on the south side of a birch at least 10in diameter, drilling a hole at 45° the size of any plastic pipe you have (Ben uses 12mm). You only need to go in by about 1/2in. Ben's book also features a recipe for birch sap wine, and for rabbit cooked in cider because January is the time of year he ferrets for rabbit at Prickly Nut Wood. We weren't sure about The


Woodland Year when it came out, uncertain how the sections written by other woodsfolk sit alongside the seasonal diary by Ben. It's an interesting combination of the inspiring stories of people who live and work in the woods, and Ben's useful information for anyone interested in trees and woodlands. For instance, in January he will have been pruning his fruit trees (apples and pears) tying down the branches to make them weep for easier picking, and because he says that stressing the tree will encourage it to produce more fruit bud. 'I take pride in my fruit trees,' he writes. 'They bring me a whole range of pleasure throughout the year. When spring arrives they delight me with their tantalising blossom. During summer I enjoy the cider I made the previous autumn. In abundant years I am boxing up apples to take to my local greengrocer.


Fold up the bottom of the sheeting and the ends, then roll up


The Woodland Year, by Ben Law, is published by Permanent Publications (permaculture.co.uk) and costs £19.95, hardback.


Spring 2010 Smallwoods 15


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