How To Coppice Hazel Trees | What is Coppicing? | How To Grow Hazel For Firewood & Woodchip

How To Coppice Hazel Trees | What is Coppicing? | How To Grow Hazel For Firewood & Woodchip
Music Courtesy of Epidemic Sound, for one month free use this link www.epidemicsound.com/referra...
PLEASE VISIT MY OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA:
Follow me on Instagram: ericas_litt...
Like my Facebook: page / ericas-little-welsh-ga...
Follow me on Twitter: Erica_Galpin?s=08
Visit My Website: ericas.little-welsh.garden/
If you fancy supporting my channel please visit:
One off support: www.paypal.me/EricaGalpin
Become a Patron / ericaslittlewelshgarden

[@troyhonaker3516]

I wish folks would stop fearing carbon. You’re encouraging continued growth of trees and plants. You are using the land in a smart way. Just because something burns doesn’t automatically mean it’s bad. It is a cycle. Ash goes back into soil. CO2 goes back to earth. As long as there are plenty of flourishing trees and plants, there is no issue other than exaggerated fear. You are working with nature. You are fine.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Thanks for the lovely comment. 😊

[@derekroberts8637]

I totally agree. Just think how many billions of tons are locked up in limestone and chalk. These carbon nut jobs forget its the gas of life.

[@Dill-it-Yourself]

A friend once told me that if it’s from above the ground (wood), it’s meant to be burned. If it’s from under the ground (fossil fuels), it’s not meant to be burned. This makes a lot of sense to me.

[@a22024]

​@@Dill-it-YourselfBurning oil is fine too.

[@patdelaney191]

We have been burning wood for centuries with no detrimental effects to the world. It's the man made stuff like bombs, planes, rockets etc etc that's done all the damage and 'they' aren't going to stop doing that are they. So don't be told by do-gooders what you should or shouldn't be doing with your own land.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Thanks for the lovely comment.

[@marksiezure3285]

Yes, on the woodland tour. Don't stress about other's opinions, you're doing what's best for your circumstances.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Thanks for the comment, a woodland your will come up. 😊

[@jackiefoster8866]

@@ericaslittlewelshgarden I am in South Wales but have a very small garden. You have an amazing space .

[@grahamlong6870]

The beauty of growing and burning your own wood is that every stage keeps you warm., ie, Cutting it down, then cutting it up into smaller pieces, then splitting it (for the larger bits) then carrying it indoors, then burning. You could in fact add cleaning out the fire.

[@alaricsnellpym]

We're just getting started looking after our own little woodland (and resurrecting the hazel coppices), not to far from Wales near the Forest of Dean! And yeah, it looks like you've got the same sort of approach to us. So don't let the haters hate ;-) Thanks!

[@ecocentrichomestead6783]

A woodland walk through would be nice. Wrt firewood: Firewood uses carbon already in the carbon cycle. Fossil fuels adds carbon to the carbon cycle. To conserve is always better than to produce, but there'll always be a need for production. Any energy/heat production will produce carbon emissions. The key is to have more organic matter produced than carbon emissions.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Yup, you're right. 😊

[@johnfitbyfaithnet]

Petroleum is a natural part of the environment.

[@ecocentrichomestead6783]

​@@johnfitbyfaithnet Petroleum is carbon that had been taken out of the surface environment millions of years ago. Where did you go to school?

[@Whistlewalk]

Your logic behind how your are managing your trees is really well thought out. A lot of people who have opinions on how to manage woodlands have never had to do it in a way that keeps it safe for use and for it to produce some sort of income so that you can actually afford to keep it. Maintenance of any kind can be expensive, and liability for damage to people or buildings or other peoples' property in any way can be even more so. Excellent logic in what you are doing with your woodland. Thanks for the video.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Thank you, such a lovely comment.

[@devon932001]

Great video!! Don't worry about what other people are saying. You have to manage your property the way that works for you and keeps you safe. I hate people who say they want to help, but when they see what is involved they say no.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Thanks for the lovely comment.

[@darrybush5293]

Erica, Yes would love to see a tour. I wouldn’t worry about what other people are saying. Just remember haters are going to hate for no good reason. Happy Gardening from Southern California.

[@johnfitbyfaithnet]

Agreed!

[@MrPaulstride]

much love, just planted two trees

[@dollygrice677]

I don't worry about burning the wood. Our woodstove has a catalytic converter. The carbon is from a "recent" cycle as opposed to using fossil fuels releasing ancient carbon. I am going to plant some hazel or willow soon just for this.thanks for the advice.

[@JBNat]

Awesome idea for a video Erica. I'm so jealous!! I used to coppice woodland for a wildlife charity and it was one of my favourite winter jobs. Really connects you to the land. Just the other day I was wondering if I could get away with sneaking a few plants into the allotment to cut plant supports from it. Good to hear you're nervous about using chainsaws - they should always be respected! Burning wood when you're growing it yourself is just excellent, nothing to feel guilty about in my opinion. I'm not sure what the flora of your woodland is like, but you might get to see some interesting things now that you've cut back the brambles and returned the coppice to a cycle. A lot of our native vegetation is really well adapted to go dormant whilst the trees are in leaf and growing, and then burst into life when light reaches the understory again. Things like wood anemone are fantastic for that! I'm sure there's lots of flowers you could consider planting too (if you wanted to); oxslip, wood avens, anemone, wood-sorrel, wild strawberry, primrose, violets, bugle, all sorts!

[@joshuatheregularguy8974]

Yes, absolutely nothing to feel guilty about with burning it. It's not like it's a 400 year old tree supporting the Amazon basin or something. It's a 'normal' tree and it's not that old. There aren't hundreds of years of carbon stored up in it that are being released. Coppicing and using the wood for fires and for fencing and tool handles, etc., was standard practice for centuries, though most don't seem to realize that these days.

[@airisaiia7340]

Fantastic! So glad I came across your channel today! We're moving to a small holding and plan to work with coppicing and pollarding for fuel supplementing, wood chip for the garden areas and animal areas. I can see straight away that we need to plan a sizable area for wood processing and stages of drying and storing. I like to have things organised and it's so helpful to see your process and add to my own prior experiences. Thank you for sharing and I can't wait to watch more of your content.

[@carolwhite6979]

Erica, great video and great use of you home grown wood! Do not let anyone malign you for burning the hazel or other wood to supplement the heat in your home with wood! It is far better than anything else you could do and far more economical and carbon neutral. Grown on your land used and returned to your land. Yes, the o articulates can bother asthmatics, but those particulates are also captured and brought to the earth if it is very col, raining or snowing; and returned to the soil. Those big old trees if diseased are dangerous in a storm and need to come down when you can. chop them up for firewood too. One other thing you can do with the pruning, is create a wildlife pile at the back of your garden, as I have seen Colette do. Shelter for birds and hedgehogs and foxes. eventually, they will also breakdown to compost. excellent reminder about the tomatoes! 😀 we are all very eager to get started in the garden!

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Thanks for leaving such a lovely comment!

[@ginnysulya9805]

Hi Erica, very much enjoyed this video as I am not familiar with coppicing trees it has sparked an interest to see if any trees on my property that we could use in this way! We have a fairly dense forest area that I would like to see get more light for biodiversity of plants and wildlife! I have to admit that the more of our acreage that I get into a sustainable format the more work it becomes! We have almost 2 acres and though I don’t plan to make major changes, just keeping it walkable and clearing out invasive species takes a lot of time! Best wishes and I would very much like to see a tour of your woodland!

[@niltonc.7333]

Thanks for the video, I am here to understand what Coppicing is due to the Sycamore Gat tree feeling, hope that tree makes it :(

[@stevendowden2579]

yes that would be nice erica

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

OK, I'll get to it.

[@laylamorgan4018]

Yes would love a walk through

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

I'll do it.

[@jpennturner]

We take a third of the tree each year so get decent sized poles.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Great method.

[@BloosSelfReliance]

I would LOVE a coppiced hazel for basketmaking. wow good for you hun xox

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Thanks 😊

[@b62boom1]

Absolutely class! Everything you plant is a natural carbon capture machine. You're probably removing much more carbon from the atmosphere than you're producing. Keep up the great work, you're doing wonderful things!

[@grantgreenham2834]

Don't feel guilty, it's a cycle, people have been burning wood since man kind discovered fire!

[@angelafoxmusic7265]

Lovely. Very inspiring. 😊

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Thanks for watching.

[@jackiefoster8866]

Love a woodland your .

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

I'll get onto it.

[@Kriss_L]

Heat primarily with wood, and save about $1,000 a year on LPG and electricity. Works great.

[@richardhart7652]

Depending on how vigorous they grow back and what you want to use it for I would consider starting on the first one in in 4/5 year's time as at least one looks like willow and grows almost over night. Another way of ensuring you've got your cutting the right way up is to put a slopping cut on the top end

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Good idea about sloping cut etc. Thanks for the other advice. And yes 3/4 years sounds like a good idea. 😊

[@chrisdaniels3929]

Thank you. This is very interesting. I'll try to plant some hazel cuttings.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Yay! Hope they do well.

[@quinntheeskimooutdoors6234]

Thanks for sharing 😊

[@ginavalcke8162]

Well done!!! Such an honest video. I can almost feel your pain. I am in London and I have a wood burner and I also have moral dilemmas between particulates and money saving. I find it difficult without having the added complexity of burning my own wood and sharing in social media. You are brave. I feel jealous of all the wood you have, not only for your burner but you also can use around the garden. Someone mentioned mushroom inoculation, also you can make raised beds and “pavers” for your garden. You have inspired me to plant some hazel - though I just have space for couple of plants.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Hope the Hazel's grow well. 😊

[@baibastrazdins]

Yes to woodland tour

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

OK. 😁

[@petermcfadden9426]

Love your enthusiasm for coppicing hazels. It really is the most useful tree. Greetings from Conwy, North Wales.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Thank you, I do love playing with wood. 😁

[@helenmcclellan452]

Yes, on the tour of your woods,and I would also like to see the rest of the property, and deck where you have ypur containers.

[@adrianhart9409]

Nothing wrong with burning wood as long as its dry. It releases just as much carbon as if you leave it to rot - no more. Burning wet wood is bad, as it burns inefficiently releasing larger polluting particulates. However once dry it burns efficiently with very little ash. Unlike Gas, coppice wood is sustainable and so is far better for the environment. Plus it keeps you fit.

[@UrbanWhiteBuffaloFarm]

Hey Erica, This is a new concept for me that I never heard of. Very interesting idea I think it is a great idea!! This was a fantastic video. I would love a tour video. I was so happy to see you smiling all through the video today you looked very happy. Cya next time bye for now

[@yonmusak]

That cut you did in the first minute is not coppicing mate - way too high off the ground. That is more like collarding, where you lift the stool higher to avoid rabbit damage. If you want to coppice, and you can protect the stool from rabbits, try to cut lower down, or over time you'll stress the stool.

[@SmallholdingUK]

Love hazels, although in all honesty I’ve not had much luck with cuttings so this year I brought 1kg of fresh Kent cob nuts to plant, I’ve done a video on it, so hopefully these will take well as if it works I got 272 nuts for about £15 Hazels are in my top 5 favourite trees for sure their so versatile Nice video 👍

[@dantheman6698]

id like to see a tour of your woods and dont be bothered about burning wood as you regrow it so its pretty neutral and with energy prices as they are it makes sense to get as much wood as possible. also you could just buy hazel nuts and plant them to get as many hazel trees as you want!

[@rojacostly635]

Go on then, take us on the walk which will be lovely.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Will do.

[@pennythompson4790]

I would love a look around your woodlandx

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

I'll do it.

[@virginiacarrington84]

Excellent video.. I appreciate the thorough explanations you’ve provided. I have a small piece of land.. a field really.. in Portugal with a line of trees along the border. I am turning it into a food forest. I have three young hazels and coppicing them is my plan.. now after watching your video, I’m thinking of coppicing some of my straggly oaks too. One thing I don’t know if you mentioned.. coppiced trees live much longer than other trees. Your land looks lovely

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Thanks for the lovely message! 😊

[@toady..9833]

easier to do "air layering" with hazel rather than cuttings, clingfilm moist dirt handfull sized on young shoots , and cut off below after it roots then plant, can also pleach and lay from existing hazel stools 👍

[@joshuatheregularguy8974]

I would very much like to see a tour!

[@barnabyvonrudal1]

I think coppicing and pollarding are amazing! What type and size saw did you use?

[@Azwafood]

Hello dear zabeardast nice work

[@ivyjulieharvey3043]

Great advice and good ideas. If you looking for ideas for your woodland area and the tour would be great; in my old Woodland Market Kitchen Garden area I had chickens in the wooded area not only did they fertile the area but also cleared area and turned up the area naturally where I could use some of natural fertile compost for my raised beds. The trees provided the perfect shade for the chickens I moved them around every 3 months to allow the land area to rest and allow new growth for the wildlife to use for nests or food or both. I have had in the past guinea fowl that was in part of the wooded area. I know you are in built up area so may not be great idea but maybe a water garden or secret woodland garden with edible flowers and orenitals. Good luck and keep up with the amazing work.

[@johnking-ht5ez]

I would like to see the woodland tour.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Great

[@ADAWC]

Thank you for your video! Very helpful and inspiring👍 To increase the success rate of propagation, you can cut the bottom half side sharp to promote root growth. To cover the seedling with a thin permiable cloth or drain liner would dramatically increase the propagation success. By doing these ways, you would have almost no propagation failure. Thank you for sharing! Keep up the good work!🙏

[@rebeccazody1278]

Great video and I learned a lot. Would love a woodland tour.I can tell you have done your research on all of your woodland management. I have several big, skinny, dangerous trees on my property too. I am considering logging to get the money to also take care of the dangerous trees.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Thanks for watching! I'll get a tour arranged!

[@jeffbee6090]

yes take me on a tour, new here.... and quit apologizing for staying warm please... burn wood if you wish. the critics are all using electricity and that burns coal.... You still are better!

[@lonefoxbushcraft]

Your fit ❤

[@williamwaha3193]

Most modern landowners don't manage their woodlots at all . They ( if they have it done at all , ever ) have their property ' High Graded ' , ' High Grade ' Cutting is where the Best Trees are cut for the highest possible lumber prices . When the Foresters come in they trim off all of the branches and leave the residue as ' slash ' , the only portion of the tree that is taken is the trunks , the entire top of the tree is left as residue . The straighter the trunk of the tree the more desirable it is for lumber also depending upon the species of the tree . As I drive the highway ( not the interstate ) the number of trees that have fallen onto the electrical power lines is absolutely ridiculous . Here in the U.S., Vehicles have ' height restrictions ' , tractor trailers are not to exceed 13 feet 6 inches tall , therefore the powerlines are at minimum 14 feet off the ground . The landowners along these powerlines ( of which the powerlines are at the side of the roadways ) have trees that are taller than powerlines and poles directly next to or near those electrical lines . If you have a tree species that gets 50 feet tall on average then you don't want that tree within 50 feet of anything else , 200 foot trees not within 200 feet , as a tall tree falls the height of the tree will hit with force anything within that radius of where the tree stood . So do not apologize for your woodlands management program at your place , you are already miles ahead of most landowners and repurposing your product on site is best use , it was grown there and it should be used there . Coppiced / Pollarded trees live longer than ' original upright ' trees do , in some locales coppiced / pollarded trees are their ' ancient ' trees . In Japan they have ' ancient ' coppicing / pollarded trees that they called DAISUGI . It's how they grow straight timber trees for lumber on unlevel grounds . Check out DAISUGI , I think you'll like it .

[@yarnybart5911]

Great video. I cut a hazel back the other day and wondered if there's any chance of me getting any of them to root if I plant them in a raised bed now (beginning of December)? Maybe I should have done that back in the autumn? I have a treeline that is full of very mature hazels and (initially at least) I plan to selectively coppice the largest branches (although getting them out from the tangle of other branches may be a challenge). That way I get plenty of firewood but leave the treeline largely unchanged.

[@saethman]

Any research or experience in terms of nut production in a coppice-system vs not? (I believe hazel bear nuts on old wood, so would probably reduce nut production quite a bit, but being able to harvest wood, wood-chips and more in addition to nuts is - well, nuts :) In a good way)

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Not that I am aware of.

[@ontherocksinthesoilmichael6739]

I would suggest with some of your wood innoculate some for mushroom cultivation. Shiitake, Wine cap, chicken of the woods all yummy edible mushrooms.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

I'd really like to do this!

[@ontherocksinthesoilmichael6739]

@@ericaslittlewelshgarden for general cultivation information I suggest watching videos by NORTHSPORE on KZbin. You may have to get mushroom spawn or pegs of inoculated material in the UK but your Oaks that need to come down these would be perfect for Shiitake and chicken of the woods and several other varieties. Oyster mushrooms can work in many substrates so might be worth investigating.

[@saethman]

Forgot to ask (so a new comment for the youtube-algorithm) - how old was the stool you coppiced? Trying to figure out what I can expect, but even though people say 5-7 years (which you too did) it's difficult to find people showing how thick their hazel is after 5-7 years (most of the vidoes I've seen on the matter have been old, neglected stools - or freshly planted or cut ones)

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

I'm not sure because I've only owned the house for 6 years so possibly older?

[@saethman]

@@ericaslittlewelshgarden You should have coppiced them the very first year, then I would have known lol They seemed to be a very nice size

[@marjoriewilliams6446]

Are we looking at Hazel as in Hazelnut, Corylus . Or Witch Hazel, Hamamelis. Great video, you are doing a really good job -- don't worry about what others say - we are watching to see how You are doing it and we support You. Thanks Marjorie Cape Cod, Massachusetts

[@sarahamilton7903]

Usually in the uk when we say hazel we mean Corylus.

[@marjoriewilliams6446]

@@sarahamilton7903 Thanks so much Sara!

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Thanks.

[@lonefoxbushcraft]

One question..im going to plant kent cobnut...do yiu think i could get a harvest of hazel nuts and coppice same time ? I no the common hazel don't produce nuts compared to Kent cob

[@gedhuffadine1873]

Heat pump! Next door has one £800 a month electricity bill since autumn Per month!

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

I bet. They need to get their tariff sorted out and a battery installed! 😊

[@johnfitbyfaithnet]

Wow!!

[@cherylhowker1792]

Great to show this as I’m thinking of getting some hazel for the garden so I can do this, as I want to process it for wood chip and I thought it may be better to grow my own then keep buying wood to process or trying to get wood chip. Can you tell me how long it would take to get to the point I can cut it down? Is it every 3-5 years or less or more? Also looking into the hazel hedging that I can do the same with.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Some of the saplings that have been cut last year and sprouting like crazy are only a few years old.

[@cherylhowker1792]

@@ericaslittlewelshgarden that’s good to know. Looking at getting some hedging ones that I can cut down still… and I can plant some separately so that they are individually planted . Is the hazel the best to get ? I have been doing a bit of research and that’s what I can find so far. As I want something I can cut and will regrow quickly so I can cut again, sort of within 3 years. So I can have say 6 that I cut 2 a year in rotation like you said. That’s why I said this was great timing x

[@oakashthorn5714]

When is the best time to take cuttings from the hazel tree???thanks good video

[@barkershill]

Winter . But Hazel is so vigorous that just about anything you stick in the ground right way up will grow

[@elisabethabildtrup2270]

Have you had succes with cuttings from hazel before? I am asking, because everywhere I read about it, it is said that it is not possible to propagate hazel with cuttings ...

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Yes I've grown them this was a few times before.

[@barkershill]

Propagating Hazel is very easy , just get some bits the thickness of a pencil and push them into the soil right way up . But not in the summer .

[@iand3028]

You spoilt it as soon as you mentioned carbon.

[@ericaslittlewelshgarden]

Why?

[@johnrobinson3905]

I'm not 'Mr Expert', but I think the coppice stool you showed here is cut too high. This will still create some regrowth, but it will prevent the stool from spreading outwards over time.

[@Debbie-henri]

I wouldn't be too worried about burning wood as fuel. Wood kicks off a lot of heat and was more capable of heating our house than the gas central heating we used to have in another place Green solutions are way beyond our finances, and Imtnot happy about batteries which use elements that cause problems in other parts of the world - plus a lack of tecycling for solar panels and turbine blades. Green energy has got to do better than this, and it looks like geothermal and DAWTs might be the answer, eventually. I burn wood I grow from my own trees too. But while some ends up on the fireplace, other bits are added to extensive brash hedges (for wildlife), as 'defence boundaries' for plants vulnerable to deer/pheasants, and as props for annual vegetables/fruit/nets and the like. I find that some of the stakes I have shoved in the ground have rooted to become pretty good plants. To begin with, I discovered Hazels take root when I took just 2 cuttings as an experiment, and one rooted. Next year I took 25, and only one rooted. I didn't bother after that (seedlings everywhere anyway), just used them in the ground where they will be useful and, on occasion, a number of them will flourish (as long as the weather doesn't get too hot). I find coppicing such a heart rending job. I had to cut down my 2 favourite Hazels last Autumn, both having the best shape of all my collection. Had to be done, they were growing huge, and I'm sure they'll come back better. In the little strip of woodland I own, there are a few Hazels that look like they were coppiced regularly until recent times, when the art died out. I'm slowly working my way through them.

[@Debbie-henri]

Yes, a walk through would be interesting. It's always interesting to see what someone else is doing in this regard.

[@helentc]

Does Oak Coppice? I wonder if that would just kill that type of tree. I think it's important to note that not all Trees Coppice.

[@dingusdan]

you can definitely pollard an oak there's so many ancient pollarded oaks in this country

[@DrDooDah]

Don't try to coppice oak. It grows much to slowly. (They have a 1000 year life span!) For coppicing, stick to hazel and ash. They will both work on the 7 year cycle.

[@richardwakelin843]

Do not cut down mature trees just because you find them ugly.

[@Warntator]

imagine being so brainwashed you actually think there is something wrong with heating your home with firewood.

[@222rich]

Stop panicking. The way you are coppicing will create by growth, far more biomass than you are burning.