who owns a woodland?

[davetaz]

Interesting questions and thoughts. We have a woodland that we bought 18 months ago in north wales. 21 acres for £56k. Wife and myself had careers in nature conservation for a while and we always said we'd buy our own place as a "private nature reserve". We changed careers, I became a landscaper and she a management consultant. We moved house 18 months ago when prices were at their peak, making enough profit to buy the wood outright (everything fell just right!!!) and down-sized!

I go up there a couple of times a week and we take the kids whenever we can at weekends, staying overnight in the caravan or camping with friends and family. So we use it for lots of different things, primarily as an extension to our outdoor lifestyle (although we live an hours drive away), the kids love making dens and playing on rope swings etc. Camping weekends with others are great also (open fire cooking etc).

As we improve its wildlife and bio-diversity potential we are able to generate a certain amount of product that will eventually create a source of income (firewood, coppice products, timber etc). Having a portable sawmill (logosol) enables us to process timber for our own use and hopefully in the near future some to sell.

I suspect we'll never make a fortune from it but so long as it covers its costs then that will be ok. In terms of future value, I strongly believe we will be able to sell it for a lot more than we paid for it. Although the housing market has hit rock bottom, the price of good agricultural land and woodland has still been increasing.

Before we bought Misty Wood, we actually managed to secure a mortgage to buy it through the Ecology building society - it can be done!!!

Next project is to set up a business near home in cheshire collecting, processing and selling on firewood - watch this space!

[Invicta]

Davetaz,

Congratulations - sounds great to me.

Two of us have access to a site where we run coppicing courses. I was surprised how far people will travel to spend a weekend working green wood. We have a deal with a local B&B but when the weather allows we offer people the option of building overnight shelters so they can sleep outdoors.

[Sawtooth]

Im working a local woodland near my home owned by the local farmer

 

 

how do you work it?

Chainsaw and a cart

 

what did you pay for it? (if you don,t mind telling)

I thin out the overgrown woodland for the farmer leaving him with a tidy woodland with potental in the future and then I keep all the timber thats thinned out.

 

what do you get out of it?

Firewood ranging mostly from a diamiter of 4cm-10cm

 

do you enjoy it?

Came back from college for Xmas and used many of the skills I learn in the wood. I do enjoy thinning out the trees making a rough track for my cart and then hauling out next winters firewood knowing its my production.

 

There are quite alot of disused woodlands around the country and if like me you know the local farmer and notice the disused and overgrown woodland he owns theres a chance to get a load of free firewood and revitalise a woodland.

 

 

Cheap and productive

[davetaz]

If you want to talk to other woodland owners, look at this forum

http://www.woodlands.co.uk/swog/forum/

 

(small woodland owners group)

[Catweazle]

anyone own a woodland?

 

Yes, 17 acres mostly good quality Sweet Chestnut coppice in NW Kent.

 

how do you work it?

 

It will be worked as a standard coppice rotation producing post and rail fencing, charcoal and firewood. I've also planned on adding a variety of native fruit and nut trees, both for wildlife and produce.

 

what did you pay for it? (if you don,t mind telling)

 

£50,000 at auction in early 2006. It's worth a lot more than that now, mostly due to location on the edge of an expensive village and just 5 miles from the M25. It's also less than a mile from home, which is a big plus for me.

 

what do you get out of it?

 

Mostly firewood at the moment, but that will change when I can devote more time to it.

 

what can you do with it?

 

Apart from the wood produce I can let my dogs run loose, I practice archery, and shoot rabbits, squirrels and woodpigeons. I have had the firearms officer there, and the land is cleared for rimfire rifle.

 

do you enjoy it?

 

Yes, I get stressed working in London, a mooch around the woods relaxes me.

 

reason i ask is i would love to own one but have always wondered if it is worth it

 

would it be for profit from production or for re-sale or would it just be for sheer pleasure and self satifaction

 

 

I don't currently make any money from the woods (apart from it supplying all my heating fuel needs) but intend to once my normal work has dropped off some more, probably next year. No hurry, the trees just keep growing without my help.

 

 

It's worked well for me as an investment, but I paid cash, if there was interest to pay then I'd have to make an effort to sell some produce. It seems like a fairly safe place to put some money, and there are tax advantages to be explored.

Edited September 7, 2010 by Catweazle

[Sam Thompson]

Yup.

 

We own 18 (though will be 48 soon) acres of woodland in Cheshire Its hazel coppice surrounded by some older beeches and limes.

 

We get most of our firewood off it, and the trees in the surounding fields (we have an agreement with the land owner) provides the rest. We also have 7 very happy and fat Glouster Old Spots running around living off the habitat, apart from some winter supliments, which we turn into bacon when they are ready. I also shoot within the wood - I put down 350 pheasants and 300 partridge this year. I put down corn to bring in ducks onto a flight pond we dug and all that adds to the "truely" wild game - Rabbits, Canada Geese, Pidgeon, Squirrals etc. Just as an aside, last year I out down the same numbers of game and only shot 142 pheasants, 78 partridge and 69 mallard. Combining this with the pigs, and the large amounts of venison we "aquire" (lots of deer stalking all around the country) we buy very little meat, though much of the pheasants and that are given away to friends.

 

 

Its only been "fully" coppiced once since we have owned it, and that was in 1996, so I think we will coppice again in 2011/2012. The firewood we get is either fallen wood, dead standers or a tree that needs felling (only done that 3 times I think).

 

Aswell as releasing the birds, putting down feed and predator control we also leave piles of "stacked" brances and things as habitat for beetles and other little beasties (: And have put up a fair few bird boxes too. I started doing the consevation work because after all the pleasure the wood has given me I think it only fair to give something back. I also planted some cherry trees a few years ago and they are well worth having... mmmmm cherry pie:eating:

 

 

I use a quad for most everything, but we recently bought a Kubota RTV jobbie a while back and that is proving to be a real asset to us.

 

No idea how much it cost though, sorry!

 

I would say go for it!

 

Sam

[elfinwood saws]

hi got 7 acres in weardale best thing i ever did we have our holidays there teach our child about the outdoors and wildlife, we get firewood for ourselves and we have a pit heap hidden away that has kept us in coal for the last 8 years, we grow our own veg there and keep our horses there, it makes me very happy having our own little magical place.

I would recommend buying some woodland.

[renewablejohn]

When we bought the farm it included 1 acre of mixed woodland and since then we have planted 2 acres of mainly sissle oak ash alder cherry scots pine and holly under a forestry commission grant scheme. Looking to buy more woodland within a 15 mile radius. Unfortunately most of the woodland is owned by United Utilities so it may have to be more farmland which we plant ourselves.

[davetaz]

Yup.

 

We own 18 (though will be 48 soon) acres of woodland in Cheshire Its hazel coppice surrounded by some older beeches and limes.

 

We get most of our firewood off it, and the trees in the surounding fields (we have an agreement with the land owner) provides the rest. We also have 7 very happy and fat Glouster Old Spots running around living off the habitat, apart from some winter supliments, which we turn into bacon when they are ready. I also shoot within the wood - I put down 350 pheasants and 300 partridge this year. I put down corn to bring in ducks onto a flight pond we dug and all that adds to the "truely" wild game - Rabbits, Canada Geese, Pidgeon, Squirrals etc. Just as an aside, last year I out down the same numbers of game and only shot 142 pheasants, 78 partridge and 69 mallard. Combining this with the pigs, and the large amounts of venison we "aquire" (lots of deer stalking all around the country) we buy very little meat, though much of the pheasants and that are given away to friends.

 

 

Its only been "fully" coppiced once since we have owned it, and that was in 1996, so I think we will coppice again in 2011/2012. The firewood we get is either fallen wood, dead standers or a tree that needs felling (only done that 3 times I think).

 

Aswell as releasing the birds, putting down feed and predator control we also leave piles of "stacked" brances and things as habitat for beetles and other little beasties (: And have put up a fair few bird boxes too. I started doing the consevation work because after all the pleasure the wood has given me I think it only fair to give something back. I also planted some cherry trees a few years ago and they are well worth having... mmmmm cherry pie:eating:

 

 

I use a quad for most everything, but we recently bought a Kubota RTV jobbie a while back and that is proving to be a real asset to us.

 

No idea how much it cost though, sorry!

 

I would say go for it!

 

Sam

 

Hi Sam

sounds very interesting

There doesn't seem to be a great deal of coppice in Cheshire. I have lots of people contact me for coppice products (I live in Nantwich) but I can't get hold of enough (especially bean poles in spring). I reckon you could quite easily sell most of your coppice material

Where abouts is your wood if you don't mind me asking?

 

Dave

[ledders666]

Where would be the best place of looking to buy a woodland from? I've only heard of woodlands for sale and they seem pricey. Could anyone help me on this?

Josh