The Pound Wood Pages

• The Pound Wood Opening PageHome
• The History of Pound Wood down the agesHistory
• How the woods contributed to the local EconomyEconomy
• Birds, Butterflies, Trees, Flowers and much other WildlifeWildlife
• How the woods were managed in the past, and how they are managed todayManagement
• The Geology of the woods, and the climatic environmentPhysical
• How to get to Pound WoodAccess
• Charcoal Burning in Pound WoodCharcoal
• The areas that have been coppiced over recent yearsCoupes
• Maps of the wood: physical, cultural and vegetationMaps
• Newsletter items about the wood over the yearsNewsletters
• The Interactive Pound Wood Trail GuideTrail Guide
• About these web pagesAbout
• The Essex Wildlife Trust WebsiteEssex Wildlife Trust

Topley’s

Topley’s is named after Rob Topley, our oldest working party member, who celebrated his 90th birthday during one workparty. The coupe was coppiced in the winter of 1997–98, and the photographs here were taken in July 1999.

Two of the images show two views of the coupe, from the south-west, and from the south-east. The other two images show the cordwood at the southern boundary (with the power cables visible in the background) and the pile of brash along the eastern boundary.

One year after coppicing, there is a vigorous sward of low ground flora, especially the Common Cow-wheat on which the Heath Fritillary feeds.

Removing Standard Trees

When Topleys was reviewed for coppicing, the Trust conservation staff considered that the number of mature standards was excessive. The optimum number for wildlife is around eight per hectare. By this criterion, Topleys had at least six too many. Thus a number of oaks were earmarked for felling during the 1997–98 season.

A cut is made low down on the side of the tree on which it is intended to fall The cut is triangular, with the lower face parallel to the ground. The next cuts are on the other side of the tree. As the tree falls, it does so away from the chainsaw operator.

The side branches are now removed and are stacked nearby. The felled tree can now be sawn into convenient logs that can be moved by tractor to an adjacent area (below) where it can be further processed.

Planking

To facilitate removal of the timber, it is convenient to convert the trunks to planks on site, using a mobile planking machine. Each trunk is brought next to the planking machine and then winched onto the platform and secured into place. The planking saw is then brought into play.

This generates considerable quantities of sawdust which can be collected The first slices taken from the side of the log are removed to one side. The planks proper are then stacked ready for removal.

Chipping

The wood that cannot be converted to planks, and which is not intended cordwood or the habitat pile, is converted to wood chips by a chipping attachment. These chips can be collected and sold as a garden mulch.