Heading for some snedding

A delightful winter morning for some GoodGymming goodness, continuing our work to improve Petersham Common Woods. We found a nice spot that was overgrown with brambles and small trees that we coppiced to enhance the habitat for songbirds. With their trunks we did a spot of "snedding". This meant lopping off all the side shoots with bill hooks so the trunks could be used as stakes for hedgerows. Great work team! Here is some more info from task owner Ken.

Coppicing is a traditional management practice that involves cutting the trees to the ground so that they regenerate into thicker dense low habitat that is ideal nesting and feeding areas for British native songbirds.

In the past, coppiced timber was used for firewood and building materials. Now we will stack it as habitat to encourage invertebrates (insects) including the endangered stag beetle as well as hibernations sites and nesting for wood mice and hedgehogs.