Maybe the UK should plant more....

[Big J]

Just now, AHPP said:

You’re not necessarily being evasive but you’re not bursting with answers either. Are people primarily growing eucalyptus because it’s a good crop or because it makes good money in subsidy?

It's a crop that fulfills several key criteria. Firstly, it produces a crop very quickly. Secondly it sequesters carbon very quickly and thirdly, it's a nice amenity. 10 year old nitens is a nice place to be. You can't say the same for 10 year old broadleaf or sitka.

 

We planted 55,000 eucalyptus this year, mostly nitens. 

[Paul in the woods]

2 hours ago, Big J said:

 

I'm sorry to hear that your plantation has suffered.

 

It's just a few acres of amenity woodland, not a plantation. But it does highlight many problems.

 

I'm not convinced pine martins are the answer to grey squirrels everywhere, they may well eat them but they also eat a lot of other mammals, birds, eggs etc. Also not sure how many decades it'll take to eradicate greys from places like Devon.

 

With regard to fire, even it wet Devon you do get extended dry periods where fire does become a worry when you're living on the edge of woodland. Not sure if Euc is any worse than gorse and pine though.

 

I'm seriously thinking of putting in a acre or so of Euc, just for our own firewood. Something to diversify away from the ash that's coming out elsewhere.

Edited December 23, 2020 by Paul in the woods

[AHPP]

Now you are being evasive. Answer the question if you don’t mind.

[Big J]

1 minute ago, Paul in the woods said:

It's just a few acres of amenity woodland, not a plantation. But it does highlight many problems.

 

I'm not convinced pine martins are the answer to grey squirrels everywhere, they may well eat them but they also eat a lot of other mammals, birds, eggs etc. Also not sure how many decades it'll take to eradicate greys from places like Devon.

 

With regard to fire, even it wet Devon you do get extended dry periods where fire does become a worry when you're living on the edge of woodland. Not sure if Euc is any worse than gorse and pine though.

 

I'm seriously thinking of putting in a acre or so of Euc, just for our own firewood. Something to diversify away from the ash that's coming out elsewhere.

Happy to show you some of the plantations if you like Paul. I don't make anything out of the actual planting, but we have invested in a local nursery which is growing nitens for us. 

 

An acre of nitens would easily do your domestic firewood needs in perpetuity, with first thinnings at year 4.

[Big J]

1 minute ago, AHPP said:

Now you are being evasive. Answer the question if you don’t mind.

Not intentionally so. Just a little pressed for time and it's a longer topic. 

 

The woodlands we're establishing are investments. People wanting to diversify income, rather than just straight agriculture. They derive income from the carbon, the harvesting and the amenity value. It's multifaceted, but they are being planted for economic reasons. 

[Mr. Ed]

I can speak to pine martens doing for greys. Not a one here, but some reds. And pots of voles and birds too. this clip might show our resident charmer:
 

https://maggs-my.sharepoint.com/:v:/p/ed/EeTEDnU_IK1MvcMhdCF1le0BoS4K2_tN6_9ZG_EHYinnYw?e=WOwDfb

 

 

[AHPP]

Not intentionally so. Just a little pressed for time and it's a longer topic. 
 
The woodlands we're establishing are investments. People wanting to diversify income, rather than just straight agriculture. They derive income from the carbon, the harvesting and the amenity value. It's multifaceted, but they are being planted for economic reasons. 

I want to hear everything there is to know about it so if you need to avoid a board game or something over Christmas, I’ll be reading. I suspect eucalyptus is a great crop for real free market use but I also sadly suspect the amount of carbon it puts on (and therefore the amount of taxvictims’ money it can attract) is the driving factor for most people.

[Khriss]

27 minutes ago, AHPP said:

Now you are being evasive. Answer the question if you don’t mind.

Hes probably  working at this point, wot happened to courtesy? K

[Big J]

11 minutes ago, AHPP said:

I want to hear everything there is to know about it so if you need to avoid a board game or something over Christmas, I’ll be reading. I suspect eucalyptus is a great crop for real free market use but I also sadly suspect the amount of carbon it puts on (and therefore the amount of taxvictims’ money it can attract) is the driving factor for most people.

I'm not going to go into forensic detail here. 

 

But yes, the carbon is one of the primary driving factors for planting now. It stands alone (without carbon) very favourably as a crop, but the addition of the carbon revenue means that we can put it on the most productive (ie, highest value) sites, maximising tree growth. 

 

I'm sick to the teeth of harvesting on ground that is second rate, stupidly steep or has terrible access. As such, we only plant on drivable, lower level, fully accessible sites. 

[Paul in the woods]

51 minutes ago, Big J said:

Happy to show you some of the plantations if you like Paul. I don't make anything out of the actual planting, but we have invested in a local nursery which is growing nitens for us.

Thanks for the offer and I would love to see some one day. I have intended to plant some Eucs before you mentioned Nitens so don't need convincing.

 

The site might be less than ideal so if I do plant it up it may be of interest to you and the nursery to see how it does. Have you posted up their details at all or can you PM me them please?

 

And AHPP, this would all be done with my own money purely for their practical use. I could see similar people to me (smallholders) being interested in them as well.

 

On that note, does Nitens have any other uses? Is the wood rot resistant at all for example?