>>>It has to be better, if it is new, that is the message the tv has given them, so they think it is true.<<<
LOL, they are now ‘discovering’ SRC... Short Rotation Cropping.
Well, that is what they are calling that ‘NEW’ practice of getting 10-15 tons of wood per acre per year...
SRC is the ‘buzzword’ to replace that outdated ‘coppice’ that has been around for so long that it has been forgotten in most parts...
CB - you asked what coppice is, well it is the cutting of trees just above the ground and letting them send up shoots from the roots that are already established. They grow much faster than seedlings as they have a massive established root system already. This reduces erosion and produces much more wood from a given space. Poplars, Willows, Chestnuts, Maples, Oaks, Gum and other trees will send out new shoots from the root. Conifers which we plant by the gillions do not...
Some of the ancient coppiced forests have root systems up to about 30’ in diameter and continue to produce.
I particularly like the hybrid poplars as they grow about 8 feet even in the first year... They can be used at almost every stage of growth. Several of the pulp wood processors are now planting thousands of acres of the poplars in the Pacific NorthWest for paper making - they are working to biologically ferment the wood for biofuel, and also plants are being built now to pyralize the wood for biogas production.
Sometimes we have to use the jargon of the day - Phytoremediation, Carbon Sequestration, Carbon Neutral, Reparian Buffers, and all those other terms that the ‘greenies’ seem to value... I call it common sense conservation.
CB - you asked what coppice is, well it is the cutting of trees just above the ground and letting them send up shoots from the roots that are already established. They grow much faster than seedlings as they have a massive established root system already. This reduces erosion and produces much more wood from a given space. Poplars, Willows, Chestnuts, Maples, Oaks, Gum and other trees will send out new shoots from the root. Conifers which we plant by the gillions do not...<<<<
Oh, now I understand, I call it “cut and grow again”, as I do with my oriental vegetables, leaf lettuce, swiss chard, etc.
Laughing, as I think of all the things that can be grown again, if given a chance.
Mother Natures use of God’s gift to keep food growing for man and beasts of the fields.
Coppice-so that is the name for this practice. Have been amazed seeing every year the shoots springing from the base of trees we cut the year before. Usually I cut all but one or possibly two shoots from the base of each stump but didn’t realize there was a name for this activity. We also planted fast growing poplars last year and will plant more this year. We are still harvesting dead black cherry from the swamp, so probably our children will get the most benefit from the poplar.
Received my seeds today-finally!! Every year I get a news letter along with my seeds from this small local co-op. This year, the letter was almost entirely about the heavy demand for seeds and all the varieties that were sold out already. They hired an additional six workers this year just to handle the extra demand.
Also harvested the first of the many trailer loads of seaweed I will add to my compost which presently is mostly horse manure. Sure will help my clay-filled soil. Needless to say, my back is aching tonight and I will be retiring soon.