What to do? A great rumbling tractor is not always appropriate, with the woodland floor and all those tree roots suffering as a consequence of its use, so this is where Jimbo the heavy horse comes in. Almost every year (especially when we have been working at Roundwood, which is a Scheduled Ancient Monument where the archaeology must not be disturbed), the horse loggers come to Trelissick and fit Jimbo with an Amish-made harness to haul out our timber with the minimum of disturbance or noise. He might be slower than a machine, but he is also a lot quieter, gentler and a lovely sight to see working in the woods.
Deadwood and habitat piles
Jimbo doesn't remove all of the debris, as leaving some of it has its own benefits to the woodland ecosystem. In fact, when we carry out our forestry work each winter, we try really hard to leave behind as much material as possible; from single logs to full tree-lengths of wood – left to rot down and return to the earth. All of the brash (the smaller branches that form the tree’s crown) is used to make ‘habitat piles’. These piles of sticks (which we saw up really small to make them as dense as possible) offer shelter and protection to mice and a haven for hibernating hedgehogs; they offer food-a-plenty for beetle and invertebrate larvae that feed on the wood; they are colonized by an array of fungi such as witches butter, cup fungi and honey fungus, all of which help break down the materials and recycle nutrients back into the soil.
Later, as these brash piles are enveloped by a barbed barrier of brambles, they provide excellent, protected nesting and feeding sites for birds such as the wren and the woodcock (and in a place as popular for dogs as Trelissick has become, these secret places are sorely needed).
On parting…
So, over these two articles, it can be seen that woodland management is an enormously complex area. We are really just carrying on the management of the woodland as it always has been, since these trees were planted (apart from a brief and wayward diversion during the 1800’s that gave us grey squirrels and rhododendrons). The difference is that we have the luxury that comes with working for a unique charity like the National Trust; we can favour wildlife over productivity and have the backing and support of a large organisation which enables us to actively manage the woodlands in a positive, sustainable and sensitive fashion.
This is really just the tip of the iceberg – we haven’t covered the management of veteran trees (the really, really old ones) or the rigorous tree surveys we carry out for visitor safety throughout the estate. Who knows? Maybe there will be a part three…..but we’ll spare you that for now.
– The ranger team, Trelissick and North Helford