Stereo

Conversely we had a rep turn up one day in a knackered fiat panda and it did his prospects no good at all.

Ac/dc (Bon Scott), zep, purple, airbourne, Motörhead.

Alder is also good for this. Doesn't rot under water.

A sad story to remind us how lucky we are. Doreen's Story - YouTube

That's the worry. Access is off a remote country lane up a dirt track which would need to be improved as it's 4x4 only at the mo. The place is in south Devon and it's like a bit of dartmoor but off the moor. It's been in my family for generations and nobody ever goes there, it's just rented as grass to the farmer next door. Seems a shame as there are probably loads of good sorts who would respect it and enjoy it. Like you say though, it only takes a few. I would hate to go up and find beer cans and bog roll all over the place. It's not really big enough to be a feature so wardening etc is out of the question. I guess I'll just leave it be, plant some trees and let it get on with it. We do get a lot of Hazel, Elm, Ash and Syc around here but up there it seems Oak dominates. I'm thinking maybe get a grant to plant it out in mainly broadleaf and let nature take it's course. We can always give permission for camping / artists etc on an individual basis. I wouldn't ever want to sell it. Doubt it's worth much to be honest.

What's the view on elm? It's rampant around here and suckers everywhere but never gets to be big trees due to ded. It's mostly hedgerow but seems to thrive as a pioneer species on rough land. I kind of see it as a pain as it never gets anywhere.

What's a pension?

I'm probably going to 'inherit' a 4 acre plot of land in the next year or so. It's not productive. It's the site of an old volcano (last in south west we are told). It has grass and it grows Oak like nothing else. That is all that grows there aside from some Hazel. So, it's like a 4 acre rocky field with outcrops and big oaks, brambles, some grass and a big old rock face of some ancient fame which you can sit atop and gaze in awe at the view. It's maybe not worth a lot in farm terms. But it's very special. I went there today and there is 'something' going on. It's always been this way since we played there as kids. It's almost magical. Anyway, enough of that. My view is that I'm not interested in the value of it but at the moment it's tucked away on private land and I have an idea to open it up to the public. I'm sure there are loads of folk from climbers to artists to hippies to free campers who can find something of benefit on this land. My idea is to plant it out in trees which will in 3-400 years become an ancient forest. A gnarly old mess of pure English nature. Mainly oak as that is what thrives here. So, the question is that given there is a sheer rock face and some boggy land, what do I have to consider when opening it to all comers? Insurance? Liability? I can't be bothered with that but the truth is I would probably visit it once or twice a year and that seems a shame when most people are not gifted such a piece of land or have access to it. I walked there today and saw no serioue money to be made but maybe a lot of people could get a lot of pleasure from it. Ever walked somewhere and felt like you were walking in a dream? That is this place.

Blimey, it's complicated innit. Need to get some beardies in on my job I think. Mind, you, have a decent beard myself at the mo. No idea about all this stuff though.

TM, get in touch with CCCS or payplan. Have you already defaulted on the debt? If so then the best way to get away with minimum settlement (assuming you credit file is already screwed) is to pay them £1 per month for a while and then go for a full and final offer once they know they are never really going to get it all back. I know there is a lot of stigma and attitude about debt but a lot of people got into problems trying to support their business etc. and got rate-jacked by the banks when it all went wrong. The banks got bailed out (inc Lloyds). Pretty sick that they can't take a better attitude to other people who maybe made a few errors and got into problems.

Well I spose if you are really ill then that's different. I mean there is REALLY ill and that state you just can't work though. But most colds / flu / bugs, you are better puking and pushing on I find. Nightmare but it's the best way. My advice is red wine. I drink about 60 gallons a day and while everyone around me falls ill with bugs and colds, I seem imune. It may be that or being brought up on a farm and eating pasties after having my hands in a rabbits guts etc. But if you are really ill, you need a doc, I think. In terms of income, you can get insurance for this sort of thing if you rely on yourself for your income.

The ash is now in the log pile. Hopefully it will coppice up.

That's a happy looking bear.

I am hearing that the movement to ban wood buring stoves is growing in the US with some states already looking at banning them on health grounds. What goes on over there usually ends up here eventually (apart from the right to arm bears) so is this the future? I can see the sense in some kind of regulation like woodpile inspectors although this is a bit Big Brother for my liking. I wouldn't though be suprised if at some point in the future it became illegal to sell unseasoned firewood.

Elm is a lovely firewood. No problem with moisture if split.

I use a Clarke CCLH1 with an old Husky garden saw. Goes through billets or branches in seconds and is the best thing I ever bought to be honest. I love it. Lots of similar units on the market. Now, I bring back stuff in 1-1.5m lengths and season it like that outside. Then log up quickly and safely on the horse.

I would use syc I think as its supposed to have natural antiseptics built in or some such.

Won't it just fall to bits or warp? Interesting idea I must say. Might try it myself.

Acca Dacca Acca Dacca

Good advice this. Apparently I'm hypermobile although you wouldn't think it to look at me move. Anyway if you have stretchy joints, hydration is very important.

Is the land wet / boggy? I'm looking for something to plant on a slope which is fairly dry. Tempted by Willow just to see what happens.

I would give up on any thoughts of being stiff in the morning for the next 6 weeks. Sounds like you lost some serious blood.

Human error I guess, we all do it. I was reversing the bobcat the other day with a pallet of stock on the forks. So busy looking behind I didn't realise the weight of my foot was tipping the forks back towards me. Luckily the pallet was wider than the cab and it stayed in one piece............Little things, easily done.

We planted some kind of willow whip in the garden a couple years ago. It came free with a cherry tree we were given but with no identification. I cut a slot with a spade and showed it. It's now at least 4 metres tall and must be 4" at the base. At the rate its going I can see 6" in 12 months. It's insane. As it is I plan to log it this year and get it to coppice. I might also take a load of cuttings and stick them in around the place where we have boggy land.

All very good stuff. I'm not in logs but I do sell to people and I know that people will only spend so much time looking for a supplier. Once they find one who provides a top service at a price that is acceptable, most will stop looking. That's the way we are and that's why insurance companies etc. put so much money into customer aquisition. Just out of interst, these logs you guys sell, are they all clean and split? I mean would you bad up the tops of an ash tree, all covered in lichen? I would happily burn this but is this an issue with customers? ie they expect clean split logs with not much bark?