Restoring a chestnut woodland

[Darren]

I ask because firewood is in increasing demand. Only today it's been announced that energy prices may go up 60% in the next 6 years. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/8297882.stm Which in turn will put more demand on firewood. I think we need to look towards the future demands made and plan for them now.

I've already seen the price of softwood firewood go up to £50 per ton with hardwood in short supply.

[wood troll]

Hi All

Thanks for all the info and comments, I have read all with interest.

Unfortunatly the option of allowing the chestnut to grow to full size is not an option... the owner wishes to gain firewood from the woodland and I have a need for chestnut poles and posts. I think the stools will have to be coppiced leaving worthwhile potential oak standards and planting/encouraging new stools to fill the gaps.

It is interesting that the French seem to be much more savy about firewood than the Brits. They are aware of the price of a cord of different types of wood, its burning qualities and how dry it is. (I saw logs being sold in the UK that had been cut less than 6 months and was being burnt... a crime in my eyes. Perhaps there needs to be a lot more education on how to burn wood!). As a whole the French manage their woods much more carefully than the Brits, I think this is because the peasants never got out of the habit of burning wood and making fence posts. This may change however as the rural populations decline through aging and second homes. (That said, the drop in the pound has killed the property market over here as Brits with UK based incomes cannot afford to stay here and new ones are not replacing them.)

wood troll