Forestry and Land Management
Forestry is the art and science of managing forests and woodlands for a purpose. At Glen Dye our forests are managed for timber, amenity and conservation.
We are looking to produce both high quality timber, beautiful and accessible woodlands and to preserve and protect animals, plants, the soil and water. We practice several forms of forestry at Glen Dye including continuous cover.
Continuous cover forestry focuses on preserving the tree cover and is less intrusive than alternatives for example clear felling. Regardless of our methods all our felling sites are replanted with mixtures of trees or left to regenerate naturally, often under the canopy of older trees. In this way we get a forest structure that provides the largest range of habitats.
Where we can, we always prefer natural processes to regenerate young trees, as these are usually more robust than planted trees. In some areas we leave trees to mature and die naturally, as this provides habitat and stability.
Some specimens at Glen Dye are very big, particularly some of the North American conifers. Despite their size these larger trees are relatively young, less than 200 years old. In some cases, they can live for several centuries and grow almost twice as large. We intend to preserve these larger trees for future generations to enjoy.
A large proportion of the Glen Dye forest is Scots pine woodland and we are encouraging more broadleaves like birch, rowan and holly to grow, as these add to the wildlife value of the forest.
Glen Dye also produces timber, much of it of high quality and some which is used in bespoke joinery and in historic building restoration projects.
Most timber is felled using local labour and is taken to local mills, the closest being only 7 miles from Glen Dye. By growing trees longer, milling locally and using timber in long life applications, we are reducing our harvesting carbon footprint considerably. The whole forest, timber activities included, is a net carbon sink and is helping to reduce the impact of climate change in a small way.