Posted by Jan on January 1st, 2010

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A whirl of white as the branches and twigs grow a coat of frozen snow.

Alder twigs, seed long since dispersed, making lovely patterns in the snow.

But the ground feeding birds need hedges and trees to find their food.
……. And little patches of wildness…..

Continue reading about Some Images From a Snowy New Year

Posted by Jan on October 29th, 2009

The long awaited visit of Pro Silva Ireland (PSI) to Baronscourt Estate near Newtownstewart, County Tyrone was well worth the wait. In keeping with PSI tradition, two foreign experts were invited over to Ireland to join us on the day.  Brice De Turckheim, a forest owner and forester with many years of experience in close-to-nature management [...]

Continue reading about Pro Silva at Baronscourt

Mostly I want to keep this blog site jargon free and low tech, but on this post I thought it might be useful to paste up my own notes which include a few facts and figures for those who are interested in more technical details: 
 Het Loo Royal Estate
After a good breakfast we piled into the [...]

Continue reading about Visit to Holland - “Het Loo” Royal Estate and Badger Mountain

Posted by Jan on May 15th, 2009

Yesterday I met a man who agreed to help me work through a new project I’ve been thinking about, to do with close-to-nature forestry of course.  I travelled to Dublin on the train.  We met in Juice, that wonderful restaurant on South Great George’s Street, Dublin. I had never met him before.  He started by [...]

Continue reading about Forests Evolve - You Can’t Plant Them

Posted by on November 5th, 2008

As the leaves are turning colour and starting to fall from the trees, brambles really come into their own.  Brambles are so important to birds and animals for shelter and food, especially in the winter months.
Some say that brambles are an awful nuisance in a woodland, and I know they can be in some circumstances. [...]

Continue reading about Love Your Brambles

Posted by on October 21st, 2008

Have you noticed what’s happening with the ash trees?  Just look at this -

They’re coming down with seed this year. Free trees for everyone whether you want them or not!
Ash likes it here in the Cavan/Leitrim area where I live. Ash seedlings appear in people’s garden [...]

Continue reading about Trees for Free!!

Posted by on October 14th, 2008

 
The Lakeshore Road at Garadice

When the County Council tarred the quiet lane that runs along beside the lake shore at Garadice many trees were knocked down, damaged or pushed over by the machine driver and rammed up onto the low bank, causing even more damage to remaining trees.
 
Grand Old Oak Tree At Garadice

For about [...]

Continue reading about New Life on the Forest Floor