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Look out for the
Forestry Stewardship Council logo when buying wood or wood products. |
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Around three quarters
of our country used to be woodland, and it managed for millions of
years without intervention from man. But virtually all woods today
are the result of centuries of management. Many woods were cleared
for agriculture, with only 10% of land woodland by the time of the
Doomesday book in the eleventh century. By 1800 the percentage had
declines to 4%, but since then there has been a gradual increase in
woodland cover again. Small estates planted areas for both timber
and sporting use, and then after the first world war there was a
major programme of conifer planting. More recently there has been an
increase in planting for conservation and amenity reasons, and we
are now again approaching a 10% woodland cover in this country.
But woodland that were not felled were still much valued and used by
local people or the lord of the manor. As well as occasional timbers
for housing, woods were often used for winter shelter for stock,
firewood for heating and a whole range of products made from smaller
roundwood. This could include hurdles (now sometimes found as
decorative panels in garden centres) for penning stock, or providing
wattle for the walls of houses. Nothing was wasted.
In the lowlands, a common practice was coppice with standards, a few
large trees were left for timber, and the rest were cut on a regular
rotation, varying from seven to thirty years, and left to re-grow
from the stumps. The oak woodlands in the south west were frequently
entirely coppiced, with fence stakes, cleft timber (splitting along
the natural grain) and bark stripping (for tanning leather) also
major uses. Frequently the coppice cycle died out around the first
world war, when labour was in short supply. Many woods have been
largely left since, although coppicing has been making a comeback
because it is so good for wildlife.
●
A woodland of your own ●
Managing for conservation ●
●
Woodland grants and permissions ●
Woodland taxation ●
● Woodland insurance ●
Buying a wood ● |
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