Lepe

[adamandeve]

Hello from a small wood near Lepe, Hampshire. How do you do? Nice to meet you.

[Rich]

Hi Adamandeve,

You're not the first ones here you know

Welcome aboard.
Tell us a bit about your wood and your plans for it?

[adamandeve]

Well Rich, our wood is flat and dry and has a large open clearing through the middle. The pines need to be thinned out to allow the beech and oak more breathing space. I would have liked more hazel. We have a yew tree, lots of holly, some sweet chestnut, plus the usual hawthorn, ash etc. We have a son in law who works for the Forestry Commission....he might come in handy.

(We would like to camp while we work. Can't quite figure out the rules for this.....you can camp for 28 days but not all at once, so how many days and where is this law written so I can read it? There again, if we are working in the woodland we are entitled to stay for a season which is "less than a year". There is permitted development for a tool shed but a caravan or caravan like structure falls outside of these rules. I can't sleep in the tool shed, can I sleep in the caravan (?) or must I erect a tent next to the caravan and sleep in that carefully counting off my 28 days. Who makes this stuff up! Anyway, I digress.)

I would like to count my trees. Sounds a bit nerdy, but there you go. I would like to survey the plants. We are currently gathering a dead hedge round the camp fire area (I'm a girl, this is my woodland Wendy House).

This is Eve, signing off. (Adam is the quiet one.)

[vushtrri]

Hi Adamandeve...If it helps, my wife and I also had loads of such questions a few years ago when we bought some woodland. In the end we just bought an old caravan. Towed it into the middle of the wood one dark wet april Sunday morning, painted it Nato olive drab..which makes it blend in perfectly. Kept all the saplings around it which are steadily growing and within a few years will totally surround it. We sleep there every so often but don't keep a record as I cant see anyone from the council keeping one either. Should anyone see the caravan it would be obvious it isn't a leisure activity!! The place is surrounded by stacks of timber, woodpiles, charcoal kiln and a polelathe etc. It looks like a workplace as opposed to a campsite. I am afraid that after my dealings with the LPA my attitude is that I keep it low key and if anything crops up in the future I'll deal with it the..

[adamandeve]

Thanks V, I am inclined to agree with you.