PRO SILVA IRELAND FIELD DAY SATURDAY OCTOBER 4th
Venue: Brackloon Property, Cootehall, Co. Roscommon
Hosted by: Mickey Gabbett Forest Manager: Paddy Purser
Dr. Josef Spoerk (Pro Silva Austria) – forester in charge of investment forest properties owned by the Knights of Malta in Austria which have been managed using close to nature techniques since the 1960’s. Professor Spoerk is an excellent teacher and practical forester who inspired many members of Pro Silva Ireland on their study tour in 2006 to the woods he manages in Austria. There is nothing quite like ‘hands on’ learning and the marking exercises planned for the day will provide just that. This will be Dr. Spoerk’s first visit to Ireland. A unique opportunity for you to really delve into what close-to-nature forest management might offer you.
Rik Pakenham (UK Continuous Cover Forestry Group) – Rik is a forester based in the Chilterns in England. He is a practitioner of Continuous Cover Forestry and manages many private forests on this basis. Mr Pakenham assisted Pro Silva Ireland during the 2005 Sligo Forest Trip and we are very lucky to have the benefit of his experience again.
Brackloon property was planted in 1991. The area is made up of pure Sitka spruce which received first thinning in 2005 and a broadleaf mixture, predominantly of oak and ash which is currently being thinned. The day will involve practical sessions in the marking of transformation thinnings in both broadleaves and conifers with expert input from Prof. Spoerk and Rik Packenham. There will be a thinning operation in progress in the broadleaves and this will also be the subject of discussion. This promises to be a highly relevant and practical day, not to be missed.
How it Went:
Saturday turned out to be a really wet day so it was really encouraging to see around 40 people turn up for the workshop. Some people left early, but most stayed for the whole workshop, sheltering under umbrellas and straining hard to hear every word that the workshop leaders were saying.
A wet day at Cootehall, Co. Roscommon
Paddy Purser, from Pro Silva Ireland, is the forest manager on the site where the workshop was held and he carefully talked us through the management plans for the forest, explaining the reasons for choosing his course of action and what the desired outcome will be. The site was ideal in that it included both conifer and broadleaf plantations. Some areas had recently been thinned, some were marked for thinning and some were untouched.
Perhaps the most memorable part of the day (apart from the rain!) was the marking exercise at the last part of the workshop. Everyone divided into three groups and were given blue tape for marking the future trees to keep, and yellow tape to mark the trees to be felled. This provided the chance for much discussion and helped to focus people’s minds on what had been taught in the morning.
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