Planting plan takes shape
Over the last weeks, while enjoying plenty of time at the wood and enjoying the display of blossom and flowers and managing the camera traps (see last blog) I have a clearer plan for creating a wood. I have had six areas of focus to enable the establishment of a new wood and they have all moved forward.
1. The new Woodland Creation Grants have been announced to replace those that came under the auspices of the EU. These are marginally more generous and I can now start the application process. I plan to plant about 3.5ha of land with about 3,500 trees. This has taken some plotting - working out where to plant to optimise planting and biodiversity by leaving some areas open. The plan is still very broad brush but the areas have been identified, measured and plotted so that feels like progress. I have given little thought as yet as to what to plant and that will be something I need to work on over time. It will be a mixture of broadleaf native deciduous trees with some conifers - well Scots Pines for sure.
2. Gorse removal will be necessary to create space for trees. I estimate that there are 2 hectares of gorse to be taken out. This is not straight forward with difficult, rocky and boggy terrain. Having had 2 quotes, one contractor has come up with a good plan at an acceptable price (this is not covered by the grant). Removal will take place after the last year of pheasant shooting which ends in January '22. Not all gorse will be removed - the focus is on removing the 3m high dense areas which are no longer penetrated by wildlife and represent a monoculture. Pink areas below are the areas with dense gorse that needs to be removed.
3. Bracken management - I have kept the paths open that I need to navigate the site. However I have realised, a bit late in the day, that I need to suppress the bracken where I am going to plant trees to reduce competition to help the saplings thrive. I estimate that there is 2.5ha of bracken and despite my efforts and help from friends, we cannot manage this amount by hand. Ideally I need to bash the bracken twice a year to weaken the rhizomes below the ground. The gamekeeper who owns the shooting rights needs to open paths to manage his activities and has used his 4x4 scooter with a cutting blade behind and opened those paths easily. He has kindly tackled some additional areas for me and has agreed to do more when he is up at the site. I will only get one proper cut this year and will need a firmer plan for next year. It is amazing how quickly the site became engulfed this year. Some bracken will remain as it can support some wildlife such as invertebrates. The red areas are those with bracken and the picture below shows what can be done in less half an hour with the right machinery.
4. Access is not ideal to this site. Although it abuts a road, the gate that was added in preparation for selling the land is small and the wall has not been removed where the fence has been added. In fact the fence also still ran across the opening when I bought the land meaning a careful transition of the wall followed by a big stride over the fence! This was kindly opened by friends in March. There are points of access from neighbouring fields; however following discussions I have come to the conclusion that I need to apply for planning permission for my own access. That process is now starting.
5. Protecting new planted saplings. The new saplings will need to be protected from deer with a deer fence and from voles (who eat the bark of saplings which can kill the tree) by individual tree guards. There is some controversy with this approach. Those people rewilding won't plant saplings or offer protection and see their project as allowing the land to come back into life through stopping grazing and allowing seed stock in the ground to produce new trees. With the amount of bracken and gorse on this site I have decided to take a more interventionist approach. Having removed gorse and suppressed the bracken, I shall plant saplings and protect them. I have played with different ideas about the deer fence and have concluded that a full deer fence is necessary around the whole site. Also I need to use tree guards. With the uplift in the grant I can now afford biodegradable ones which should last the 10 years needed to establish the new trees.
The plan
Having made this progress I now have the first macro level planting plan. This to me feels like a real stop forward although it may just looks like some blobs on a map to others! Some of the areas in red have trees already planted there so I expect to plant new woodland on between 3.2ha - 3.5ha rather than the 4.2ha identified below. The minimum density to plant is 1,100 trees per ha.
"Bracken clearing Now and next summer and forever!"
ReplyDeleteMaybe you need to invest in a Boudica quadbike, like the gamekeeper's (but electric, natch)
Yes I have wondered ... it's where to store it. And once the saplings are in a quad bike is less helpful - I think it will need more work by hand. Maybe I need to go on a scything course afterall (they are running them up here - obvs!)
DeleteAlso I have had one of these recommended to me - https://www.husqvarna.com/uk/products/brushcutters/520irx/967916202/ I could store this at home and charge it up from the solar panels. It works for about 3 hours which I think is as much as I would want to do. It was costing this up and thinking about maintaining it (and considering whether I could use it with the battery so close to me) that made me think I will perhaps pay for one of these with a person attached to it in future years. The new grant does include something for bracken clearance so I can now include that in my application (the previous grant didn't cover that - my first Brexit benefit.....)
DeleteThat Husqvarna looks like a serious piece of kit, and a lot less than a quad
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