Small Woodland Owners' Group (SWOG)

News & Events

  • Launching the Tree Charter

    It was great to celebrate the launch of the Charter for Trees Woods and People at Lincoln this week. More than 70 organisations have worked for two years under the leadership of the Woodland Trust to create a new tree charter that aims to put protection for trees and woodlands at the heart of government…

  • Newsletter November 2017

    November newsletter What can woodland owners do about soil erosion and depletion?  We look at the launch of the Sustainable Soil Alliance, which provides some ideas. Rich is building a timber-framed barn using traditional techniques as far as possible, and all from wood he has felled and milled himself. Read his account of how it’s…

  • Building a New ‘Old’ Barn – Part I

    As a tiny acorn can eventually lead to much bigger things, so has the seed of an idea I had of building a new barn to season my wood and store my forestry equipment.   I have been managing two small woodlands on the edge of the High Weald AONB of  East Sussex for 3 or…

  • Memories of the Great Storm of 1987

    Britain went to bed on the night of 15th October 1987 having heard weather forecaster Michael Fish reassure the nation that it might be a bit windy, but there was certainly no prospect of a hurricane engulfing the country.

  • Newsletter October 2017

    We couldn’t let the October newsletter blow by without reminiscing about the great storm of 1987. Arborist Christopher Sparkes shares his memories of Britain’s windiest night. Was the storm actually a blessing in disguise for trees in southern England? Karen Elliott, a winner of both SWOG’s Big Picture Competition and a Woodland Award for photography, tells…

  • Newsletter September 2017

    The season of mists and mellow fruitfulness appears to have started early this year and SWOG is gearing up for autumn. With  news of workshops and courses around the country, the September newsletter includes a useful piece on tree tech: mobile apps for tree ID, wildlife recording and woodland management. More than 1,000 people across England, Scotland…

  • Butterfly Workshop 30th July

    The last in our series of butterfly workshops was held at Combwell, an SSSI  (Site of Special Scientific Interest) in the heart of the High Weald of Kent.  It was well attended by about 18 owners and other interested parties who enjoyed a breezy, but mostly sunny and dry tour of the woods.

  • Newsletter August 2017

    It may be the dog days of summer, but in our latest newsletter, SWOG members can look forward to a packed autumn schedule of courses and workshops. Read about the SWOG butterfly workshops and download our information sheets here. We’re also looking forward to the Bentley Woodfair in September, and SWOG members qualify for an…

  • Butterfly Notes

    Thanks to Steve Wheatley and Neil Hulme of Butterfly Conservation for these notes about butterfly species and how to encourage them in woodlands.       Butterflies of Plattershill Woods Tottington butterflies Combwell butterflies

  • Butterfly Workshop 23rd July

    If our last workshop at Plattershill proved to be the perfect conditions for spotting and identifying butterflies, this weekends event was almost exactly the opposite.  It was promising sunshine as I drove along the bottom of the South Downs to the event at a woodland close to the village of Small Dole in  the Adur…

  • Butterfly Workshop 2nd July

    Last Sunday saw the first of a series of SWOG and Butterfly Conservation joint workshops.   About a dozen SWOG members, owners and other interested parties joined us at Plattershill Wood in West Sussex on a close to perfect day for spotting butterflies.  It was warm and sunny with a very light breeze.  If  anything…

  • Newsletter July 2017

    Summer is in full swing and woodland glades are dappled with sunshine – at least we hope so! The July newsletter is here: Take Sylva’s British Woodland Owners’ Survey from 7 July Sign up for SWOG meetings – don’t miss a special day at the Bulworthy Project on 15 July Learn about tackling invasive species and…