Woodland Management: Greave Primary

Historically woodlands were used for raw material of furniture, fuel for cooking and heat, construction, tools and industry. Therefore woodlands were managed in order to produce as much wood as possible. The process for doing this is called coppicing, where trees are cut leaving the root system in place. This resulted in a quicker natural regeneration of species, due to the energy contained in the roots. This didn’t work for all tree species - for example Oak, which were left as standards and were allowed to grow into mature trees for timber. This is where coppicing with standards came about, which is where species including hazel and ash were coppiced and oak were left as standards.

Historically woodlands were segregated with different species in different parts; this allowed each segment to be harvested in rotation rather than temporarily wiping out a whole eco-system. To preserve nature they also ensured there was a corridor for wildlife. This system also created whole areas of natural light in the woodland which in turn encouraged wildflowers to blossom and their associated insects.

Greave School’s grounds are currently maintained by an outside company who come in to mow the grass.

Pruning takes place on areas next to footpaths and playing fields, and larges branches /trees are felled when obstructing clear passages or when damaged by storms.

It is now important to start managing the site more sustainably, by coppicing trees properly (in autumn) where desired and thinking about how we are using the woodland and how we can help it to flourish for future education and enjoyment.

There are paths that are mowed through a part of the Forest School area.

Branches that are deemed dangerous are removed from trees and left on the ground in a suitable place, as part of an ecosystem for plants and animals on the floor.

There is a tree stump (1metre high 20cm diameter) that is left and has moss and lichen on, allowing children to see what happens naturally as it decomposes and leads a different life.

In preparation for a fire, overhanging branches are removed.

There are a selection of trees arranged in a wild configuration allowing smaller saplings to grow alongside a variety of field layer shrubs and plants.

This system is currently sustainable with the size of the trees at present but it may be required to change in the future as trees increase in size.

General woodland management techniques at present are influenced by the traditional method of coppicing. Although the woodland is now looked as a whole eco-system and trees are managed to ensure there is regeneration of all the vertical layers in the woodland. The demand for wood is not as great as it has been in the past, therefore less than ¼ of the trees in the country are coppiced in the traditional method; with some areas not using the method at all. The general use of woodlands today has changed significantly with them being used for leisure purposes and for conservation – ensuring there is biodiversity as well as guaranteeing they are accessible for the general public. Today woodlands are managed in line with health and safety, rather than to regenerate trees.