Coppicing

Crab Wood is a piece of ancient coppiced woodland just outside Winchester.  I've blipped from there several times before.  At the end of the afternoon my daughter and I went for a short walk before it got dark.  We were just commenting on how neglected the coppicing seemed to be when we came on this glade, newly cut.  It looks just ready for the spring flowers to come up. 

The workers had left the remains of a fire smouldering.  Very nice on a cold walk.  You only had to lift the surface of the ash to realize how hot it still was.  It must have been lit yesterday, if not the day before, but hopefully this is just the scrub being burned.  There are still large numbers of poles lying in piles on the floor. 

Hazel spars from coppiced woods are traditionally used in thatching and for making hurdles, laying hedges to make charcoal, etc.  I'd like to think the ones that have been cut here will be properly used, though I guess so.

Thanks for your kind reaction to my smoker and his Dalmation yesterday.  I feel there are some similarities with today's, but this is a different kind of smoke!

Enjoy your evening xx