29/09/2026
I normally use all my brash (small branches) for building dead-hedges but today I started to burn some, partly because over the past 8 years we have created nearly a mile of dead-hedge throughout the woods , and partly because I will soon be replanting areas which I have cleared, the soil in these areas is acidic after 35 yaers of spruce growing there, burning the brash maked alkaline ash and biochar which will improve the soil to allow the next generation (mainly broadleaf) to establish and grow faster, capturing more carbon over more years.
It seems odd that I would burn wood, releasing carbon, in order to capture carbon but forestry is all about the long term game.
Over the next 18 months I will continue to build dead-hedges but also produce ash/ biochar through burning.
