Overgrown coppice. What to do?

[Sharpy92]

I have a coppice mainly Hawthorn and Damson. It is over grown with nettles and other weeds. It was only coppiced last winter so the growth of the stools are only 2ft tall but they are still shorter than the weeds. Whats the best way of dealing with this? Leave it to do what nature does best? Spray with round up or will that damage the stools? Any ideas would be great.

Strimming would be a very fidely job..

Thanks

[TGB]

Hawthorn has a place but in a coppice, it's a sod, so you start by removing those. Leave the ones on boundary. Good for keeping people out and the bees like it.

[Joy Yeomans]

No I agree you haven't got the best species their for coppice but some good habitat species. what are you wanting to get out of it finally ..firewood or fruit from damson?

[Sharpy92]

Its really just there for the birds and wildlife. Just need a solution for getting rid of some weeds as its really over grown and shading the stools and giving them unnecessary competition.

[spandit]

Don't spray chemicals, please...

 

The weeds will die down in the winter and if the coppice is well established I'd have thought they won't be too bothered by the competition.

[se7enthdevil]

i thought the old traditional way was to let a couple of pigs roam around it for a few weeks as they clear the floor but leave the trees?