Coille Righ Woodlands near Loch Shin -

PLEASE NOTE RV TIME CHANGED TO 11.00 and CHANGE OF RV LOCATION

RV 11.00 at Coille Righ Plantation near Loch Shin, IV27 4NY Map Ref NC 408237 entrance to forest track 

310 ha Planting year 81 – 86  Investment Conifer (SS/LP) planting with mixed results owned by Society member Peter Nielsen, Managed by the owner and Crosscut Forestry.

Conifer investment with new native planting and natural regeneration, combining a sustainable commercial forest with biodiversity and carbon capture. 

 Main topics of discussion:

• Introduction  to Coille Righ. History and philosophies.
• New planting 2010 of native species (near the entrance to the forest).
• Felled area (38 HA, 2018-19) and natural regeneration. Ongoing experiments to promote natural regeneration. And the results so far.
• Deer control issues. One and a half COVID years (March 2020 till October2022) without proper deer control and you are lost. The deer took over.
• Ideas and visions for increase of biodiversity, the Climate Forest. Optimising Natural capital and carbon sequestration. The combination of sustainable commercial forestry and environmental/biodiversity and CO2 needs for improvement.

After the introduction and the viewing of the two relevant areas Peter and Joanna will be your hosts of a small lunch in our building, venison based of course. This would also be the time for questions and discussion.

So food and drink is provided for. You need not worry about that. But if you have a folding chair or a stool please bring it along. We have plenty of space but only 8 chairs.

 Afterwards, on the way back south we would like you to view briefly a part of a nearby plantation near Rosehall. The sitka crop there was prematurely felled to waste some 8 years ago to make the way for a wind farm development. Nothing was done to promote regeneration and deer control hardly existing. But nice sitkas growing happily. (TBC)

Directions (from Peter Nielsen): 

Drive up to Lairg and proceed on the A838 along the north bank of Loch Shin, direction Durness and Kinlochbervie for approximately 15 miles. When you pass the Overscaig Hotel (not a hotel anymore) you continue some 800 yards and you will see a forest gate on the right (uphill). Turn into the forest some 900 meters and you will see our forest operational building. There will be signage for parking. Go to our building and feel welcome.

NB There will be RSFS signs at the at the road side access to the forest.  

Indicator Plants for Foresters Training Day – Cashel Forest, Balmaha, Drymen, G63 0AW

RSFS MEMBERS MUST LOG IN TO OBTAIN DISCOUNT.

Led by botanist Carol Crawford and forester Andrew McQueen.

Cost £130 for RSFS members (£155 for non-members).

Tea and coffee provided from 09.30, start at 10.00, bring own packed lunch.

During this largely field-based day participants will learn to identify key plants associated with different types of woodland and open ground habitats; plants which indicate soil factors and which aid tree species selection and forest management decisions.

Ancient woodland indicators, bryophytes and links to National Vegetation Classification (NVC) and Ecological Site Classification (ESC) will be touched on. Several soil pits and soil exposures will be seen during the day and associated plants identified.

The programme, handouts and recommended reading will be sent to participants in May.

After an introduction in the Cashel Forest Centre, and a look at all the handouts, the morning will be spent in the oak, ash and riparian woodlands of nearby Ardyle Wood.  We will focus on the vascular plants which indicate the different site types, including soil conditions and NVC woodland communities. Ancient woodland indicator species will be noted and some distinctive indicator bryophytes can be included.

The afternoon will largely focus on open ground habitats at Cashel; types of ground often used for planting. We will mostly be on the hill, viewing grasslands, heathlands and mires, identifying the common plant species which indicate the main site types. Two more upland woodland communities will be seen. Again there will be some soil pits to visit, including one in more improved agricultural grassland back down near the visitor centre.

Balbeg, owned by Andrew and Lynne Sinclair, was the winner of last year’s inaugural Climate Change Champions Award under the auspices of Scotland’s Finest Woods Awards. Commenting on the award Professor Chris Quine of Forest Research noted the Sinclairs strong commitment and consistency of vision drawing on guidance and expert knowledge by establishing trees to sequester carbon and contribute to a de-carboned future. Sticking with that theme Balbeg also has biomass heating and a run of river hydro scheme

Those who relish a stretch of the legs can climb Bennan Hill. We will see the recent felling of much of Bennan Wood. A technically challenging steep site with the oldest trees planted in 1932, including some good lodgepole pine. Our hosts will also show us the new woodland creation on Bennan.

The afternoon will be a walk (downhill and less steep than Bennan) through the Broadwood and Ghaisthole at Blairquhan. The owners, Pat and Marguerite Hunter Blair, say the wood won lots of awards in the 1950s and 60s from the Society, but regrettably the quality of management has gone downhill over the last decade or so and they want your advice. The majority of the wood is 6 Ha or so of oak with some beech, planted in 1938. Members will be glad to read that they will also see some conifers for diversity, including small stands of Serbian spruce and monkey puzzle of the same age.

The Hunter Blairs hope to arrange a walk through the Pinetum by kind permission of the owners of the castle.

Logistics

Meet at Balbeg football pitch at 10.00 on 29 June. About a mile and a half south of Straiton on the Newton Stewart road you will see a brown sign for Balbeg Country Holidays taking you west off the road. Follow that single track road for a quarter of a mile or so and the football pitch will be on your left.

Postcode for satnav is KA19 7NN. Grid reference NS 382 026.

Please bring a packed lunch. Shelter will available in the unlikely event that it is raining.

Morning: Grange Farm, Dunfermline, Short Rotation Forestry trials.  With Matt Parratt, Forest Research Northern Research Station.                                                      

Afternoon: Warroch Hill, Nr Kinross. Predominantly productive conifer woodland planted 2014 with area restocking in 2015. Planted under SRDP conifer & native broadleaf options. Further 65ha of planted spring 2020. With Bruce Spalding, Tilhill.

Knock Farm is owned and managed by organic farmer, Mr Roger Polson.

It lies to the South East of the prominent Knock Hill, a prominent North East landmark.

This organic mixed farm holds some 400 acres of diverse woodland and an impressive 10 km of mixed native hedgerows.

Our visit will include discussion on thinning a millennium woodland, the effects on woodland of recent gales, and the possibilities for planting new woodlands on the farm.

Meet at Langholm Car Park, High Street (Kilngreen) to enable car sharing.

Large scale new woodland creation.

Hosted by David Leslie, Director of James Jones & Sons.

Discuss new challenges with various ground preparation techniques/ landscape scale forestry management / effects of Storm Arwen wind damage.

Joint Field Day with RFS and the Continuous Cover Forestry Group.

Hosted by Scottish Woodlands.

Topics will include Continuous Cover Forestry, specimen trees, natural regeneration, deer management and Red squirrel conservation.

RV: 09.45 at the Old Sawmill, Kyloe Wood. Head for Fenwick Village, TD15 2PQ, grid reference NU066401 and the Sawmill will be signed from there (approx 1/2 a mile further).

RV: 10am, The Waterwheel Café Car Park, Philiphaugh, Selkirk, TD7 5LU. Grid ref: NT450277

Hosted by Sir Michael Strang Steel.

A mixed estate with commercial woodlands, native woodlands, wildlife tourism and a new community woodland.