Working neglected woodland

[timbernut]

I'm with you now Timbernut ,

 

 

 

I've just begun reading Wildwood (great so far) and I've read Thurkettle's book (excellent). I've also met him and had a look at the wood he's a custodian of, its out Thetford way, Norfolk I'm pretty sure.

 

 

 

My wifes's family are from Cumbria, so two or three times a year we drive back home from a trip up North. We go down the A1 and A17. If you arrive in Norfolk that way you travel through The Fens, which really is a landscape that is an aquired taste. Once you get past King's Lynn the countryside is much more varied than you'd imagine. I'm guessing you're not from this part of the world?

 

 

 

In terms of East Anglia being a haven for writers that could be because we have a vibrant arts scene. I'm a photographer myself and my brother-in-law a wildlife artist, there are loads of us 'arty' types around here:001_smile:

 

 

Slow yew down bor! I'm no stranger to these parts, born just south of the Waveney valley and now live just north of it, I love it here: big sky and not as flat as some would have people believe ( but keep it quiet ). I was referring to the arable fenland and the large amounts of prairie land between here and London, I said relatively as, particularly south norfolk/ mid Suffolk had a field and hedge system as good as Devon/cornwall's but most of it was destroyed post ww2 as agricultural advances were made and the machinery got bigger. The up side is we have some of the best preserved ancient woodland (Bradfield in particular) in the country.

 

Incidentally, if yore near Gressenhall, have you run into felix, who paints wagons? He does demos at the museum sometimes and lives on a nice plot of land nearby

[Two Acres]

So you're a Suffolk boy, you should have said Probably my favourite part of the world and if it wasn't for all the roots I have up here I'd be living south of the Waveney myself.

 

I've been to many events at Gressenhall but don't believe I've ever come across Felix, he sounds interesting

[woodyguy]

In the past, I've never really got the land ownership thing. I've owned many houses over the past 35 years but moved every few years and passed it on without any real sense of loss.

Owning a wood and doing things that will only be appreciated by my grandchildren (or two generations on, anyway) is a new thing. I've come to respect the connection with the land that that approach brings.

I was quite moved last year when my daughter suddenly announced that seeing as I'd be old and infirm soon, she had better learn how to handle a chainsaw, as nobody else was going to be keeping the wood safe and in shape when I was tucked up in my armchair with a rug, cocoa and zimmer on hand. She's been logging up and learning felling since then, so she obviously "gets it like I do".

Great to hear you learning from and appreciating your grandfather.

[Two Acres]

In the past, I've never really got the land ownership thing. I've owned many houses over the past 35 years but moved every few years and passed it on without any real sense of loss.

Owning a wood and doing things that will only be appreciated by my grandchildren (or two generations on, anyway) is a new thing. I've come to respect the connection with the land that that approach brings.

I was quite moved last year when my daughter suddenly announced that seeing as I'd be old and infirm soon, she had better learn how to handle a chainsaw, as nobody else was going to be keeping the wood safe and in shape when I was tucked up in my armchair with a rug, cocoa and zimmer on hand. She's been logging up and learning felling since then, so she obviously "gets it like I do".

Great to hear you learning from and appreciating your grandfather.

 

Well I'm kind of the opposite of that in terms of attachment to the land. I grew up, bascially, on a small farm. Grandad owned it, we lived next door to the farmhouse and us kids had the run of 40 acres. My Dad didn't find working with Grandfather the easist thing to do so he got out of farming. As a kid I loved riding in a trailer behind the tractor sitting amongst the corn. Some of my fondest memories are of Grandad making me a popgun out of elder with acorn ammo (also a whistle out of hazel), just genius and far, far better than anything you could simply buy. For whatever reason I've never been able to go far from the farm, there seems to be some innate farmer in me still that refuses to get off his land:biggrin:

[Two Acres]

Forgot to say that my kids have loved being involved with the firewood too. Stacking the split logs isn't cutting the mustard anymore though and my little lad (age 4.5) is desperate to see the chainsaw in action. When I've been logging I've shown him the saw (not working obviously) and he just can't believe the size of the pile of sawdust I've been wondering how young is too young to be able to safely use an axe to split a log - anyone have any thoughts?

[wrsni]

I love the way that if I dropped down dead or stopped working there for a few years, it would just carry on blithely without me.

 

To me this is probably the biggest thing about it. Over the past thirty years I've taken a piece of very good but neglected land and turned it in to a productive dairy farm, built a private race track on part of it, and more recently turned the areas around the race track in to our own private golf course, and of-course the woodland. The thing about the others is that they need constant input and without it they will gradually be devoured by the forces of nature which I claimed them from.

 

Not so the woodland, once properly established it can do it's own thing. Certainly while I've strength to do it I'll guide it along in the direction which I wish and if I weren't here the direction would change, but it would still be a woodland just under it's own regime rather than mine.

 

For that reason is there really any such thing as truly "neglected woodland", maybe a more fitting name would be "unworked woodland" or dare I suggest "natural woodland"!

[woodyguy]

I grew up with axes and chainsaws, largely unsupervised but sadly have the scars to prove it. So not sure really and certainly didn't do that with my kids. My youngest daughter's 23 if that helps!

[Two Acres]

Yep, that helps - if your daughter is only just starting at 23 then my three will have to wait some time. Trying to keep a keen little lad away from the kit isn't all that easy I can tell you. Probably just as well I haven't let him near an axe come to think of it. We went to Cromer beach yesterday and he decided to try to outrun a wave that was considerably bigger than he thought it was. Ended up swimming in his coat, hat wellies, you get the picture My wife had to go but him some new clothes while he sat in his pants in the cafe Still no harm done and certainly no scars

[Wood wasp]

Different generation but I had a little Sachs dolmar when I was eleven and used to cut with it, think it was 33cc but might be wrong. Was great getting involved with the wood.

 

Edit, started driving farm tractors and the county skidder when I was 12ish

[wrsni]

Well I'm kind of the opposite of that in terms of attachment to the land.

 

Same here, and happily that attachment has filtered down to the two weans.

 

May be a conflict of interest in future though. The fella is 21, currently studying for an honours degree in sportsturf science at Myerscough and has just been awarded a scholarship with the R&A, the lass is 19 and studying for a degree in agriculture. Nearest neighbour says that he wonders in 10 years time whether the rest of the place will be a dairy farm or a golf course!, I just say that by then I'll be in the woods and they can sort it out between them!