UK-- Do Most Buy or Cut Their Own?

[Grizzly Adam]

You guys seem to have a very active wood market as evidenced by all the "for sale" threads on this forum. Do many people cut their own over there or do most just buy firewood from a dealer?

 

Are the dealers typically large or small operations? Anyone just cutting part time and stacking in the garden for sale?

 

Are permits needed for cutting or for selling?

 

Thanks in advance for filling me in on the UK wood game.

[jrose]

I would say it's roughly 50/50 around me - a lot of people buy it in from a dealer.

 

Most of those who cut their own are those with larger properties or farms, often where wood is not the primary source of heat.

 

Most dealers are small operations, often tree surgeons or forestry contractors selling firewood as another string to their bow.

 

Permits- most of the land round me is Forestry Commission, so for most people it's not an option (legally) to just go and cut down a tree. There is a brushwood licence, don't know much about it myself

[Grizzly Adam]

Ok, doesn't sound too different than here, then. My brother used to hire out to cut down trees for rich people in the spring and then would sell their trees back to them as firewood in the fall.

 

We have a nature reserve near us that I could get a permit to cut at, as they are stupidly choosing to cut it down to return it to its natural prairie (nevermind that the rest of our landscape has changed and requires wooded areas now, not prairies). There are also areas around where foresters allow permit holders to selectively cut down trees that are in need of culling. Of course, there are also those who own their own land and so no permit is necessary.

 

Me, I just got to where homeowners and tree trimmers drop off logs for disposal. Much less work and free!