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Look out for the
Forestry Stewardship Council logo when buying wood or wood products. |
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Coppicing is good for wildlife because it creates a varied structure
within a wood, with a variety of young and older trees. The glades
created by coppicing are especially good for wild flowers in the
first three years after coppicing, with extra light getting to the
woodland floor. In later years, the young bushes provide excellent
areas for a wide range of woodland birds, who tend to hide in the
darkest areas, but feed at woodland edges, rides and glades. Leaving
some trees for growing to maturity provides further homes for ivy.
mosses and lichens, which in turn provide a home for hundreds of
kinds of insects.
Thousands of years ago nature achieved a balance through the
occasional falling of a mature tree and the growth of young ones in
the clearing created. Occasional major storms might wreak temporary
havoc, but in thousands of acres there was always an overall
balance. Today’s woods are too small to maintain that balance on
their own, and are often much changed by the previous intervention
of owners over the centuries.
For purely nature conservation, a good rule of thumb is to aim for a
diverse structure of trees, in age, height and species. A diverse
structure of trees provides a wide range of habitat for other plants
and animals, and also provides natural protection against sudden
damage by storms such as the 1987 hurricane which particularly
affected the south east of the country.
●
A woodland of your own ●
Managing for conservation ●
●
Woodland grants and permissions ●
Woodland taxation ●
● Woodland insurance ●
Buying a wood ● |
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