How cutting down trees can help the planet

I found out today that our application for a grant had been successful. Our particular project is for increasing open space habitat connectivity for rare and endangered species. The majority of the work will involve the felling of trees. Gasp! What? A conservation grant for cutting down trees?

You may recall that during the 2019 General Election campaign, all the political parties began outbidding each other as to who would plant the most number of trees.

Here are the pledges for the number of new trees to be planted each year:

Labour Party: 98 million

Green Party: 70 million

Lib Dem Party: 60 million

Conservative Party: 30 million

If you're 'environmentally aware', it makes perfect sense, on the face of it, to vote for the greatest number of trees to be planted. It's quite seductive to believe a linear correlation between number of trees and a healthy environment. Well, there's a problem with that. Unfortunately, what the tree pledges underline, is the complete and utter misunderstanding of ecological science.

Years of Amazon deforestation news clips had convinced me that cutting down a tree was the biggest environmental crime on the planet. I was under the misapprehension that when you cut down a tree it simply died. No more oxygen being produced, no more CO2 being absorbed, less habitat for wildlife. I could not have been more incorrect. I only really began to understand the magic of trees once I had moved to the woods.

My woodland is described as semi ancient. Its basically a mixture of ancient woodland and managed woodland. Up until the Second World War the woodland was managed to provide timber, firewood, fencing materials, baskets and many other woodland necessities. Since then, many of the traditional wood products have been replaced by plastic.

My particular patch of land had been worked as a coppiced woodland. Coppicing is the practice of cutting trees and shrubs to ground level. This stimulates the growth of many new shoots from the base of the stump to grow upwards using the energy stored in the tree's root system. Every 7 to 15 years the stems or trunks would be cut thus beginning the cycle again. Coppicing can harvest timber on a continuous basis without the need to plant more trees. The first 10 years of a trees growth is the most productive - it's primary production rate is at its maximum. This means it's absorbing CO2 and producing oxygen at it's fastest rate. In addition, the tree is less susceptible to disease and is more likely to live longer.

Regrowth 1 year after being coppiced - see how you can't even see the stumps

But CO2 sequestering and improving the health of the tree is only one side of the 'double-headed' coin. It gets even better!

This picture shows the stems growing up from the trunk after just a few months of being cut

Transport yourself back hundreds of thousands of years. Britain is almost entirely a temperate rainforest . Homo sapiens isn't around much but large beasts like elephants, mammoths and wild Bison are. As they smash their way through trees, they would not only damage the branches and stems but would actually fell some of them. When these herds went on the move, vast areas of woodland would be flattened, opening up the forest floor to direct sunlight. Seeds that had been dormant in the ground, waiting for their 'moment in the sun', would then germinate. This would then be followed by the pollinators and a myriad other species. The forest would be a mosaic of cleared areas alongside areas with much denser tree canopy.

By the time man had killed off all the big beasts, it was left to the woodsman to replicate their work. Over the last 70 years or so, woodlands have just been left. Trees that should've been coppiced are now over-stood, unbalanced and prone to disease being blown over in the wind....that does kill them!

When coppicing stops, the root plate becomes unstable and susceptible to being windblown

Dark woodland is good for some species like the White Admiral Butterfly and the Silver-washed Fritillary, but not so much for many others. Violets and goat-willow really benefit from more light which in turn attracts more butterflies and pollinators.

So my plan is to have a true mixture of tree ages and light patterns in my wood. That way by creating different habitats I can increase biodiversity.

For the record...cards on the table.....the rare and endangered species I would love to see back are the Pearl-bordered Fritillary and the Purple Emperor. Both stunning butterflies but more importantly, great indicators to the health of the woodland, If I could get those....... then my work is done.

Do you want to help bring back the Pearl-bordered Fritillary? Increasingly, friends and family have been volunteering in the woods and have found it both rewarding and physically challenging. If you would be interested in a day of forestry work then please email me using the 'Get in Touch' button at the top of the page. (Everyone should swing an axe at some stage in their lives!)