Bel's Wood

 We had a lovely cold snap with snow on the fells followed by warm winds and rain, rain, rain. I have been waiting for the trees to become dormant so that I can plant out the sapling Whitebeam that I have grown from seed and move the captured naturally regenerating trees where they need to be moved. As December has arrived (the official start of winter) I sought advice from the South Lake Woodlanders and received this expert reply 'I expect that they could be planted out. During less cold periods it will allow their roots to become colonised by local mycorrhizal fungi which will hopefully reduce transplant shock.' As ever I feel so grateful to be part of this group who give of their knowledge so freely.  The was the green light I was hoping for. I have moved 17 saplings up to the wood and so far have 13 in the ground with stakes and tree guards. I was donated this more mature sapling in the Summer and have now planted it into the wood replacing trees that did not survive when ...

The entrance to Bel’s Wood has a small clearing for a few cars and a gate to the country lane. I arrive and leave from this point on each visit. Right from the beginning I admired this mature Silver Birch overlooking the entrance. It always felt like a welcome and a farewell; grand but standing back; beautiful, tall and confident. It took a while but after a visit from some relatives to the wood I associated the tree with Marion and so I now call this tree The Marion Tree. I have photographed and taken videos of The Marion Tree in all seasons and thought I would collate them here as they begin to tell the story of Bel’s Wood and the work I have done there with help over the last 5 years. I am pleased to find this photo which was taken the day I visited the wood for the first time in August 2020 when it was on the market. The gate was not in place at this point and I was fighting my way through the bracken to try and reach the perimeter to get a sense of the whole plot. Two years la...

After a wonderful summer with sunshine, warmth and plenty of rain the trees have become well established. As the season changes signalled by the chill in the air, the colour of the bracken and on the leaves of the trees, it is time to get the wood ready for winter. I am working my way around all of the trees before the leaves fall. I am removing any dead ones including the guards and stakes. I have not removed dead trees before as I thought it was helpful to mark the areas where trees did not survive. The tree may have failed due to shallow or rocky soil or maybe it is too wet or windy/exposed is some areas. I have now decided to remove them and I will consider where best to add trees (self seed or purchased) in another year's time. I will let the trees around them fill in for now.  Some trees warrant closer inspection as sometimes a new shoot is coming up from the roots to where a shoot has been nibbled or broken. These are good examples below.  On the left a tiny Rowan visib...

I first heard the term ‘when the trees get away’ a few years ago and didn’t really know what it meant. It was the answer to questions such as 'how long do tree guards stay in place?', 'how many years will I need to manage the bracken?' and 'how long to leave the deer fence in place’. Although I knew it meant in some way when the trees were established; all of a sudden I know what it means. I have been gathering footage of trees over the summer and here are a selection to show what is now a new woodland. Scots Pines planted in January 2024 growing up fast August 2025  Hard to get the scale  As conifers these are slow growing but have made great progress over the summer. Some are now really sturdy with branches. Others haven't quite got away and I laid new mulch mats on some of them and that seems to have helped. Their shape means they won't shade out bracken for a while yet. There are Downy Birch planted alongside them and will handle the bracken for the Scot...