coppiceer

Vety interesting programme about cuckoos on Radio 4: BBC Radio 4 - The Life Scientific, Nick Davies

This might be helpful: formative pruning guide by the National Forest Co. http://www.nationalforest.org/document/information/pruning_guide.pdf

Interesting; I like the thought of doubles.

Thanks.

Also, would you set the trap at once or how long would you leave it before setting? Thanks again.

I am based in Leicestershire, selling stakes and binders. I have noticed that, this year, none of my customers have been hedgelayers. They have all been individuals, landowners or wildlife groups that are laying hedges themselves and not employing a hedgelayer. Is this widespread or just happening around me?

Thanks, I'll give that a try as well.

Oh dear; now I wish that I had posted this question on Arbtalk before I spent £93 on a Kania trap. I must say, I'm not at all impressed with the Kania trap. I find it impossible to strap to a tree, so I have strapped a post to the tree and the trap to the post. Paul: thanks for the info about the Fineren trap. I shall definitely get one of those. "My" squirrels have been raiding the bird feeders for months now and I have finally decided to do something about them.

Has anyone had any success with a Kania trap. When I leave mine unset but baited the food is always eaten, but as soon as I set the trap the squirrels leave it alone.

Does anyone know where I could hire a towable, petrol log-splitter in Leicestershire?

Thanks for the replies. I wasn't complaining about the Forestry Commission, just describing the situation. Once they had realised that I wasn't public enemy number one, they were genuinely interested and helpful. The health and profitability of my wood is what matters.

I heard my first on the 9th of April. Heard him again for 2 or 3 days, since then nothing. I suppose that he's waiting for the females to arrive. Chris the cuckoo (of Springwatch fame) arrived in Suffolk on the 28th of April. There is a very interesting piece on cuckoos by Nick Davies in this weeks "Start the Week" program on Radio 4: BBC Radio 4 - Start the Week, Vikram Seth

I received a visit/raid from the Forestry Commission last week. They happened to be passing and took exception to my coppicing operations that were visible from the main road. They came in and accused me of illegal felling as there was no current felling license for my site. I protested that I was coppicing Hazel and Ash and that I was within the allowed exemptions. They relented somewhat at this point and after a look around decided that I although wasn't felling illegally at the moment, I should have obtained a felling license for a block of Ash that I had felled 3 years ago to start a coppice cycle. It seems that what I look upon as the initial cut in a coppice cycle for Ash, the FC regard as felling for timber. It seems that I have not been bureaucratic enough and must fill in some forms..Therefore I need to err on the safe side from now on and get a license for the future. Anyway, after the shaky start they were being exceedingly friendly and helpful when they suggested that a check for Ash Dieback disease (ADB) might be useful. Unfortunately it appears highly likely that I do have ADB on the site; although I have to wait for 10 days for the test results to be sure. Looking at the samples I would not have recognised the lesions from the examples on the FC website; so it was lucky in the end that they decided to visit me. Because I have been coppicing, my wood has an open, airy structure that could well inhibit the Chalara fungus that causes the disease: Chalara prefers damp airless conditions. I have had quite a few problems trying to coppice Ash that I am not entirely dismayed at the prospect of having to fell them and start again. I am already thinking of what to plant in their place and they aren't even dead yet.

I have had a lot of problems coppicing Ash after leaving them for 8 years. There is abundant regrowth but the new shoots then "flop" over in the wind and grow into all sorts of fantastically distorted shapes. I have had to cut away the worst of the stems after 2 years growth leaving only the bset to grow on. Some of the stems are nice and straight but most take a lot of extra effort to cut up for logs. The above problems occurred whether I cut the trees as low as possible or if I cut at higher levels. All regrowth occurs from around 4"-6" of the base of the trees. Leaving a level top on stumps caused frequent stump mortality; finishing off the stump with sloping sides prevented this pronlem. The way to avoid these problems is to cut the sapling at about 4" when planting. I have tried this with self-sets and transplants and it works.

How big is your site? I planted at 1-metre spacing within each row, with a 2 metre inter-row gap every third row for maintenance access. The hazel gets pretty dense at these spacings but you are going to clear cut so that isn't a problem. If my Ash die I will simply replant with hazel and coppice them on a 10-year cycle instead. Don't plant too far apart or your stems will be crooked and so harder to process.