Wood company helps keep Lancaster community nature space special

Barley Cop Wood is located on a wet-meadow site previously known as The Paddles and formerly owned by Lancaster City Council. The work of planting trees at the site began in 1992, with the digging in of 500, but the tree population now numbers 12,000.

No matter how many trees, the aim has always been that of trying to keep the woodland tidily managed, so it is a leisure resource for the local community and a thriving woodland habitat for wildlife.

To this end, it is vital to keep woodland paths clear of overgrown trees and manage the amount of timber in the woodland, without detracting from what should be a wild and natural area. It is essential for light to reach the woodland’s floor, so that new growth can be encouraged, which means well-managing the canopy. Much work is also required in coppicing, hedging and maintaining the access points.

With some wild weather having hit the area over the winter months, there has been a need to continue the work that Logs Direct has done since 2015. All timber from fallen trees and branches has had to be removed, whilst pathways have needed to be have adjacent trees thinned, pruned and cleared.

The removed timber has been taken to Logs Direct’s yard in Halton, where it has been processed through the Swedish kilns that enable the company to supply locally sourced wood to those customers wishing to be as eco-friendly as possible. Putting it through this process is essential, as it removes the extensive moisture contained within fallen trees and ‘wet wood’, making it fit to burn, without the generation of any harmful emissions or tars.

Logs Direct’s volunteering of its skills and facilities is very much in keeping with its ethos of selling the most sustainable and eco-friendly fuels and fuel-related products and with its overall principle of supporting wildlife and habitat management. It has also raised considerable sums of money for red squirrel conservation and other nature-focused causes.

Logs Direct’s sales manager, Stephen Talbot, says: “Logs Direct is very much focused on both local and nature-based community projects and the requirements of The Friends of Barley Cop Wood suit our criteria for community support perfectly. We are delighted to play our part in maintaining a community woodland, which offers so much, in terms of exercise and wildlife enjoyment. These things have been more valued than ever during the pandemic and we are determined to help keep the woodland as special as possible, ensuring it continues to be a space in which to walk, relax, enjoy watching birdlife and wildlife and absorb the aromas and sights of the flora all around.”

More information about the woodland can be found on the Friends of Barley Cop Wood Facebook page and details about Logs Direct’s commitment to the environment can be found at www.logsdirect.co.uk