Saw-sick Steve

You'll get condensation forming on uninsulated tin sheets regardless of the amount of ventilation going through. My drying sheds are open on 3 sides and have a slatted wall on the weather side - still get droplets forming, especially in cold weather. Only difference is that with an open plan, everything dries out quicker.

How far away have they gone? With that set up, they might still hear you.

Not trying to worry you unduly, but it's worth proceeding with caution around Tawny Owls. The parents can be very protective towards their young and will often dive at intruders or perceived threats, helmet and eye protection can be most useful ! I seem to remember that Eric Hosking, the noted bird photographer, lost an eye in a Tawny Owl attack when trying to photograph a nest. As I say, not trying to scare you but it's as well to be aware.

That's a big 'ol chunk of land - where abouts exactly? And yeh, you probably could drive it away, I rescued an old 135 a while back that had sat for 12 yrs - new filters, wee squirt of easy start and away she went!

Looks like a wrens nest to me, if it's empty then you can remove it with no pangs of guilt - male wrens often build several 'cock nests' for the female to choose one for bringing up the family. Typical female behaviour, (), just means she'll have one less to choose from.

No, you won't make things worse, an Alder carr will take far more moisture out of the ground than rush/grass. It's far more likely that the Alder is growing on already saturated ground - as little else is able to - rather than being the cause of the wetness.

Gotta' agree with you there, on the estates team I used to lead I inherited some Echos that the old Charge hand used to swear by. I bought a couple of Huskys and some Stihls, and the Echos outlasted them all. After a few years, I'd reverted to Echo. Strange, as I've never really rated their saws.

Blue tits with chicks? In March? :001_huh:That seems extraordinarily early, they're only just gathering nest material down here!

Don't confuse Australians with regular trekkers! Agree with what you say about the lack of true wilderness here. In fact, the only truly 'virgin' land in the UK comprises a couple of islands in Loch Maree, NW Scotland. Loved the experience 'tramping' in the back country of NZ, camping above the tree line somewhere between the Caples and Routburn tracks - a true wilderness experience. That said, mainland Europe has some stunning wild areas, of which I've barely scratched the surface. The High Tatras, on the Slovakia/Poland border, Picos in Spain, Slovenia, Romania, etc..., all highly recommended. Looking at the Lycian way in Turkey, and the Walnut and Apple forests of Kazakhstan as future trips, but time/money/family are all factors to consider.

The grey area in all these agreements is what exactly constitutes upkeep to a ''reasonable standard''. One mans mess is another mans acceptable level. Short of getting a 3rd party in to arbitrate (= time & money!), it's a difficult one. I think you'll be on a sticky wicket regards withholding access, as presumably the new owners knew they had a right of way when they bought the land. Is the access to a property, or just land? Do they need car access, or just tractor/4wd? The reason i ask is that we have a similar situation where a neighboring farm has vehicular access through a wood. The 'access' is a forestry track, but they need to drive a car on it. All the maintenance has been paid for by them, as I only need to get a tractor along it occasionally. Therefore, the onus is on them to improve it to car standards if they want to. I'm not denying them access, just up keeping it to what it traditionally was - a forestry track! Another access I use belongs to another neighbouring landowner. This time, he owns the track and I have a right of way. Again, I'm supposed to contribute to the upkeep, but as he runs several holiday lets, his standards are higher than I require! So, every minor pothole is filled almost immediately, and Ive never been asked to contribute. So, as I say, a big grey area. What sort of access does your Dad require, and why did he repair the track? Surely if the neighbours were still using it, it was accessible to vehicles? Hope you get this resolved amicably, and best wishes to your Dad. All the best, Steve.

Shhhhh!!! Don't tell Hamadryad! Depends on your soil type, aspect, etc..., but personally I wouldn't be looking at anything less than 20yrs for worthwhile firewood production, possibly longer. On the wet, acidic Oak woods down here, you're looking at 30-40 years.

Getting wood to 25%, or there abouts, is relatively easy. It's that last 5% that's the difficult bit. If they're air dried they'll still stay at the ambient moisture level. As Kev p says above, its a good idea to get tomorrows wood in today. I've recently built an 'indoor' log store to stack 3-4 nights supply near the woodburner. That extra 48hrs or so in a warm,dry environment makes all the difference.

If you put a tarp over timber, any moisture evaporating from the ground will be unable to escape and will be absorbed by the wood. Hardwood in particular will do well stored with no side cover, providing they've got top cover they will be fine, but it's vital to allow air to circulate through the stack.

Don't normally do this, but here's a good one for Paddy's Day... A bloke is in the pub toilet when a dwarf enters and starts to use the urinal next to him. The guy can't help noticing that the dwarf is supremely well endowed, and can't help but comment. ''Jeez, that's a helluva tool'' he says ''Sure, would you like one the same?'' sez the dwarf ''Too right'' sez the bloke, ''can you make mine like that?'' ''Of course'' replies the dwarf, ''I can do magic, for I am a Leprachaun'' ''OK,'' said the man, ''what do I have to do?'' ''Well,'' replies the dwarf, ''first, you have to take this one up yer backside'' The man looks shocked, but is so determined to increase his manhood that he agrees... A short while later, while the dwarf is, ahem, pounding away, he asks the man a question; ''And how old might ya' be, laddie?'' The man replies, through gritted teeth, ''I'm 42!'' ''42'', sez the dwarf, '' and you still believe in Leprachauns...''

We toyed with the idea of relegation instead, so we could renew our old rivalry with you lot. However, as you can only drop one league per season, nobody was prepared to wait that long!

What, discover fire?

But with a woodburner, you burn on a flat grate on a bed of ash, so this isn't an issue.

I seem to remember this method being popular in N.America when I was over there, lighting 'top down' and also laying the fire at 90 deg. to what we'd call conventional, i.e logs laid pointing into the chimney. Again, I can't remember the supposed advantage - but there must be one!

Lanhydrock, a National Trust estate near Bodmin, has some nice parkland and woodland gardens. Bocconoc, near Lostwithiel, is a large estate and deer park with some nice veteran Oaks and Beech, a large %age of which is SSSI. For a real Cornish speciality, get up to Dizzard in N.E Cornwall, an excellent and rare example of a stunted Sessile Oak wood that's been 'bonsai'ed' by the Atlantic gales - you'll feel like Gulliver. Any of the flooded river valley woods are nice, Lantyan is a nice Woodland Trust reserve near Golant on the River Fowey. The Fal estuary is also worth a visit, as has already been mentioned. Cabilla, near Bodmin, Golitha, near Draynes, and Respryn are all nice mixed broadleaf woodlands on the Fowey. I'm sure I've forgotten loads, but that lot should keep you busy.

Whoooosh!!!!

Dug my old 242xp out of retirement last w/e, spent a bit of time and TLC on it and been using it all week on coppicing work. Yes, it probably fails on modern anti-vib standards, and almost certainly doesn't meet modern emission levels, but what a saw! I'd forgotten just what a beautifully balanced little thing it was, with plenty of grunt. Wish I'd refurbished it a bit earlier in the season now.

Well looking at the truck, I wouldn't rule out hairdressing....

Wrong, on every level. In 30yrs of working in woodland conservation I've NEVER seen any evidence of this. from all points of the compass in the UK. Beech will ALWAYS dominate Oak if given the chance, and the major threat to many Western sessile Oak woods is Beech invasion - greater than the threat of Ponticum. I could take you to a hundred oak woods where Beech saplings dominate the understorey, but would struggle to find one Beech wood where Oak constituted a significant part of the regeneration. Beech just loves a nice nurse crop of Oak - unfortunately, the reverse just isn't true. In the past, Beech was kept in check by browsing animals, that control no longer exists in many situations. You've also assumed that the saprophytic community will be the same regardless of the decaying species. Again. Oak supports a greater variety than beech. If we're talking aesthetics, then that's a whole different argument, but don't put Beech on an ecological par with Oak.

'Tis true I'm afraid. Beech supports some unique species and, like Sycamore, can sustain a high biomass, but in terms of biodiversity comes in a long way behind Oak.

Never underestimate the power of Gypsy spells. Haven't you seen that trick they do, where they use a sprig of 'lucky heather' to magically replace a valid tax disc?