New Year New Style!

This is Derek giving a very old willow tree a hair cut. It is called pollarding and should be done about every 5-7 years. It removes all of the new growth. These branches are very straight and would have had various uses in the past from fencing materials, to basket weaving, thatching pins and anything larger used for burning in fuel production. Large scale Short Rotation Coppice (SRC) is becoming part of the renewable energy scene. Rather than letting the willow trees get this big, they are harvested just above ground level when the tree is 3 years old and then annually thereafter. The 'chips' are then dried and stored before being burnt in a wood chip boiler. If you go along the A46 from Alcester to Stratford, look over to the right and there you will see acres of SRC.