Collage of garden photos, showing a statue of a horses head in the garden, with hellebore, crocus and daffodils

In this week's #SixOnSaturday from our Somerset garden, the spring bulbs are beginning to bloom, with crocus, snowdop, daffodil and anemone coming up.
The new #WoodForTheTrees on coppicing is fascinating, and my blog has a surprisingly high number of overseas visits. #GardenBlog

Plus a rainbow.

Woodlands evolved alongside large herbivores to form dynamic, constantly changing ecosystems. When a woodland evolves into an even-aged, closed canopy, a corresponding decline in biodiversity typically follows. Without the periodic removal of trees or canopy openings that allow light to reach the forest floor, early-succession species diminish. These early stages of growth provide critical habitats for numerous insects, birds, and mammals. The loss of such woodland—compounded by changes in agricultural practices—has resulted in the decline of many key species. Between 1967 and 2022, for instance, the UK’s Nightingale population fell by 90%, largely due to the loss of early-succession habitats needed for breeding. Currently, it is estimated that around 40% of woodland in the UK remains unmanaged. In this film, we visit two contrasting coppice operations. The first was led by Tom Kemp of Working Woodlands Cornwall, who is restoring an oak woodland owned by the Cornwall Wildlife Trust after eighty years of neglect. His work seeks to balance ecological restoration with the sustainable production of firewood and charcoal for local communities and tourism. We also met John and Arthur Leigh-Pemberton, a fourth- and fifth-generation father-and-son team managing extensive chestnut coppice in Kent. They now produce chestnut pale fencing at scale for both UK and European markets. Through these discussions, we aimed to explore the challenges each operation faces and to understand the differing contexts, objectives, and scales involved in contemporary coppice restoration. Arthur & John Leigh-Pemberton - torryhill.co.uk

Coppicing is among the oldest known forms of woodland management. Archaeological evidence from the Somerset Levels—specifically the Sweet Track—indicates that coppiced wood was used to construct trackways across the marshes as early as 4,000 BCE. This image shows a recreation of a section of that track, where split logs from coppiced wood was used to form a walkway over boggy land. This traditional method of coppicing woodland management persisted from the Bronze and Iron Ages through to the relatively recent past, providing essential resources for fuel, tools, and building materials. As Jez Ralph noted in one of our early films, “Wood was the plastic of the past.” Over the past century, however, extensive changes in industry and material sourcing have led to a dramatic decline in coppicing. The availability of cheaper imported raw materials and shifts in domestic markets reduced its economic viability. In Kent, this decline occurred later than in many other regions, largely due to the fall in hop cultivation and the closure of the Sittingbourne pulp mill in the 1990s, which had previously purchased large quantities of chestnut coppice. Many formerly coppiced woodlands have since been left unmanaged or lost to agricultural expansion and development. When a woodland evolves into an even-aged, closed canopy, a corresponding decline in biodiversity typically follows.

Coppicing - Can this oldest form of woodland management help bring woodlands back to life?
#WoodForTheTrees #NewFilm
Archaeological evidence from Somerset Levels 'Sweet Track' indicates that coppiced wood was used to make tracks across the marshes from 4,000 BCE. www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6UM...

At last month’s #ifnotnowthenwhen Rewilding Conference, Charly premiered a 10‑minute version of our film on #restoringancientwoodlands. It was met with some great really feedback 🌳🎬

Coming soon to our channel, a new film on #coppicing now in the works.
#WoodForTheTrees #Rewilding #AncientWoodlands

Charly filming with her dog, and the text " Were interested in understanding the risks that our woodlands face and how to improve their future. We;re interested in multi generational timescales and different approaches to forest management"

Meet our Team: Charly Le Marchant is an environmentalist and nature-based film maker. You can find more of her work here at pocketfullofacorns.com. @pocketfullofacorns.bsky.social #pocketfullofacorns #woodforthetrees #woodlandmanagement #ukforests

Off to London to screen our Continuous Cover Forestry film at the Confor Conference in Westminster. Hopefully will hear something positive about the Labour Government’s stance on trees and land use.
#trees #forestry #landuse #ELMS
#woodforthetrees

www.confor.org.uk

youtu.be/UrHxSNSR8pk