Visitors to Holt Wood

Holt Wood view, August 2013

Visitors to Holt Wood

Visitors are benefiting from the picnic tables which were donated last year which provide a good focus for a group.  We welcomed a group of people from Morchard Bishop Garden Club who came to visit in June. Altogether they spent several hours with us which included hearing about the background to the project and then taking a walkabout. The end of the visit was an opportunity for interesting discussion about how to develop markets for UK-grown herbal produce (thanks to Colin for the photo!). Visitors took away a sample of Distilled Witch Hazel. We have more dates planned in 2014 for visitors.

Holt Wood visitors, June 2013

Green Fair in Exeter

Look out for the Green Fair by the Cathedral in Exeter on Saturday 7th September 2013, from 10 am to 4 pm. We will be there on a stall for the Medicinal Forest Garden Trust. This is a new organisation dedicated to education and research to encourage sustainable harvesting and use of medicinal trees and shrubs. There will be information about a range of related projects and a raffle to raise funds with free samples of Herbal Insect Repellent.

Prickly Ash Bark (Zanthoxylum americanum)

Also called the 'toothache tree' as the bark and other parts such as the berries can be chewed (mind the thorns) to provide an analgesic remedy for toothache. The berries turn black as they ripen. We have planted Prickly Ash in one of the wide rides at Holt Wood and it is growing well, a bit like an over-sized gooseberry bush in habit. The whole plant contains coumarins and alkaloids, and the leaves are rich in essential oils (we find it is very aromatic) some of which are antispasmodic. Prickly Ash is known for its stimulating effects on peripheral circulation, sometimes given for leg cramps, but could have other applications.

Prickly Ash berries, August 2013

Recording the wood

How to document a wood? 

We keep records of every visit and note down any work carried out and any significant observations. These written notes are really useful for putting together a biannual newsletter about Holt Wood. This 'wood diary' also provides a great opportunity to compare activity year-on-year. A year ago, on 3rd May 2012, I wrote:

-weeded around the Echinacea plants, put organic slug pellets and plastic guards, much slug damage

-harvested 2 Salix daphnoides and 2 Viburnum opulus

-lots of bluebells, apples flowering

-cleared more blanket weed from small pond

Having last year's notes enables us to compare the effects of the cold spring this year. Now, in early May 2013, we are seeing bluebells just beginning to show, but other growth is still slow.  Although we don't keep timesheets, the 'wood diary' gives us a rough idea of the number of hours of labour needed.

The photo trail

My favourite way of recording things in the wood is a monthly photo trail. I have marked up about 15 locations with bamboo poles and string, so that I can walk round and snap the same set of trees and shrubs from the same locations. At each marker  I try to get an overall portrait for size and appearance, and a close-up of a feature such as a bud, or leaves. This provides a real opportunity to see month-by- month development, and there is often much more to see when you get close up. The bamboo markers remind me to take snaps of the following trees and shrubs:

Oregon Grape (Mahonia aquifolium), Virginian Witchhazel (Hamamelis virginiana), Prickly Ash Bark (Zanthoxylum americanum), Common Oak (Quercus robur), Hawthorn (Crataegus oxyacantha), Lime (Tilia x europea), Elder (Sambucus nigra), Yew (Taxus baccata), Purging Buckthorn (Rhamnus cathartica), Alder Buckthorn (Rhamnus frangula), Cramp bark (Viburnum opulus), Violet Willow (Salix daphnoides), White willow (Salix alba), Holly (Ilex aquifolium)

Photo trail and Yew (Taxus baccata) 4th May 2013

Close up of Yew (Taxus baccata) 4th May 2013

Harvest and other records

We keep a set of records which includes an ongoing list of plant material harvested including date, location, species, amount and processing. This information is coded so it can be placed on a label with the plant material and we can track backwards if we want to know where materials came from. And we also log all visitors and volunteers coming to Holt Wood, this is part of our link with the Permaculture Association as a LAND project. Finally, we have records of expenditure which include costs of materials, equipment and repairs, insurance, training and other essentials. We have not tried to keep detailed weather records apart from monitoring a rain water gauge

An ongoing audit

All of the above records (written notes, photos, harvest and other records) provide us with material for an ongoing audit of the project at Holt Wood, which is a kind of evaluation of how things are going. It does take a little time and commitment but the build up of detail is very worthwhile. Above all, having an accurate description of what we do and achieve is essential to be able to compare with our Holt Wood Management Plan which we update from time to time. As we gain experience, some of these findings may be useful to others!

Harvesting Cramp Bark (Viburnum opulus)

Harvesting Cramp Bark (Viburnum opulus)

Harvested branches of Viburnum opulus

Remaining stump will shoot vigorously

Tough bark

Smooth and easy to remove bark

Cleaned up Viburnum opulus ready for bark removal

The sap has been rising in our Cramp Bark shrubs, so leaves are appearing and it is a good time to harvest bark. We selected shrubs which have been growing since 2006 and are well-established alongside a grassy ride. Our permaculture design provides lots of 'edges' for shrubs and trees like this.  The shrubs were cut by hand down to within about 20 cm of the ground, leaving substantial stumps. The branches were then sorted out for quality of bark (see pictures). Fatter and older stems have bark which is less easy to remove, have many knots and bends, and are often dirty from rain splashed-mud. Bearing in mind that it is likely that the active constituents are greater in younger stems, we sought out the longer smooth and straight stems from a pencil size width upwards, mostly up to 2 or 3 years old. The youngest stems are easy to strip of leaves by running a hand up and down, the older ones need to be trimmed of side shoots with secateurs. Once cleaned up in this way, we found that the rising sap makes the bark easier to lift from the stems- making a lengthways incision, the bark will lift away cleanly in sections which can be cut short, or broken off at leaf axils. More on the processing of the bark in future posts

Coppicing of a number of shrubs together means that we have opened up the area to light and warmth. Taking the opportunity to clear out reeds and brambles at the same time, this will give other smaller plants a chance to get going. The area where we harvested  is low-lying, near a riverside meadow and often waterlogged for short periods in the winter. The Cramp Bark seems to relish this relatively moist and fertile environment, which is somewhat shaded by taller willows and alders around. Based on previous experience, this coppicing will produce vigorous growth from the base and long straight shoots which can be harvested in 2 to 3 years time. Meanwhile, we have noticed Skullcap (Scutellaria laterifolia) growing nearby, but struggling against taller grasses and lack of light, and hope that this will be encouraged by the extra space and light, to provide a viable harvest later in the year. Alongside these Cramp Bark shrubs are some willows which have been previously cut back and they can form the basis of further coppicing next year.

Identifying medicinal trees and shrubs from winter buds

The winter woodland landscape may seem bare, but there is life stirring in the buds! One of the nicest things about seeing Holt Wood through the seasons is that we have begun to recognise trees during winter as a result of being able to closely observe the buds and bare twigs.  Perhaps we are fortunate to have trees that are relatively young (planted in 2005 or since then) and so their twigs are still low down so that we can readily see the winter buds. Some medicinal trees will stay smaller and shrublike (such as Cramp Bark, Elder and Witchhazel), others readily grow adventitious shoots on the main stem or trunk (such as Lime). Size, shape, colour and arrangement of buds are all useful to note. Buds can be terminal, on the end of the twig, or lateral, arranged in an opposite or alternate manner along the sides of twigs. Buds often have protective scales, if not they are considered 'naked'. Other identification features on the twigs include the scars from previous leaves and the lenticels through which air travels in and out. Here are some examples of buds seen at Holt Wood in early January 2013.

Cramp Bark (Viburnum opulus) has opposite plump and pointy coppery-brown buds in January in Devon. Each bud has two pairs of bud scales although only one pair is visible in winter giving a smooth appearance. The bark of this tree can be readily lifted in spring for use as an antispasmodic in powder or tincture form.

Elder (Sambucus nigra) buds are purple and almost bursting open in January in Devon, little patches of green shoots already peeping out at the base of opposite twigs. Twigs are greyish with raised lenticels.  The leaves are no longer used in herbal medicine (they are fairly noxious so can be made into an insect repellent), but the flowers and fruit are valuable in colds and flu.

Horsechestnut (Aesculus hippocastanum) buds are huge with large and richly coloured brown scales. Apart from the tip, the other buds grow in pairs. The medicinal use of this tree is based on the preparations made from the fruit such as an ointment for varicose veins.

Lime (Tilia x europaea) has plump and rounded reddish-brown buds alternating on short shiny twigs which can pop out almost anywhere on the smooth trunk. Each bud has 2 scales, one larger than the other. The flowers will make a superb relaxing tea.

Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana) still has tiny yellow flower clusters in January hanging on from the previous autumn, these are accompanied by furry loose hand-like buds. A North American tree or large shrub and not a native to the UK, this shrub will provide leafy twigs for distillation in late spring.

Some useful online tree identification sources for the UK:

http://www.nhm.ac.uk/nature-online/british-natural-history/urban-tree-survey/identify-trees/tree-key/index.html#tree-s1-2 This site provides a 28 page downloadable tree identification key which has interactive steps and includes ornamental trees as well as native trees. Includes leaves, flowers, fruit as well as buds.

http://paulkirtley.co.uk/2011/bark-buds-common-european-deciduous-trees-winter-identification/ This site has a 'Bark and Buds' page with superb photos of 12 native trees to help winter id.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/animals/wildbritain/field_guides/tree_id.shtml A BBC page on 'Trees in Winter' which has some useful examples of buds.

http://www.hainaultforest.co.uk/3Winter%20twigs.htm Very useful page with common winter twig photos.

http://cabinetofcuriosities-greenfingers.blogspot.co.uk/2009/11/tree-spotters-guide-to-buds-part-1.html A naturalist site based on North-east England with glorious colour close up photos of buds. 

Since some of our medicinal trees are North American natives, some useful ID photos for North America include:

http://www.ccfpd.org/NaturalResources/WinterTreeIDpocketguide.pdf A US site with superb winter photos of key North American trees.

http://www.florabymax.net/FLORAbyMAX/WinterBuds.pdf Another US site with a wide range of bud photos.

Latest at Holt Wood

Rain measure at Holt Wood

Wet Cramp Bark berries (Viburnum opulus)

Still raining and, despite some pleasant days in recent weeks, the ground at Holt Wood is saturated. Growth is lush, ideal conditions for sedges and mosses.  Just five apples harvested today, very tasty but a reminder of the difficulties for bees in pollination during the spring rain. Crops have been poor or  unreliable. Our St John's Wort has grown well but a lack of summer sunshine led to slower production of flowers. Fastgrowing plants do not seem to concentrate the key constituents needed for medicinal use. On top of this, the wet has made it problematic to strim down weeds and to maintain paths for access. All rather drippy and depressing!

Given the damp conditions, we are looking at possible plants which may be more successful. Some, such as Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria) and Valerian (Valeriana officinalis) are well-established and can be harvested for medicinal use. Some additional plants to consider might include Bogbean (Menyanthes trifoliata) and Yellow Flag (Acorus calamus).

Meanwhile, perhaps unsurprisingly, we have been busy doing other stuff with family (looking after grandchildren) and acquiring a new puppy. Lucy is 13 weeks old, she is an Irish terrier, and a welcome addition to the family. She will be a working wood companion, and has already enjoyed several trips to Holt Wood.

Lucy inspects the moss

Looking ahead we have a Wood Working Day planned for 10-4 on Saturday 27th October 2012. Weather permitting this will be an opportunity to welcome interested visitors to the project, walk and talk, attempt some clearing of branches left from previous pollarding activity. Email to to let us know if you plan to come/ need directions.

Finally, we were glad to see a feature article 'More bark to the bite: woodland can provide a sustainable source of bark' by Anne Stobart, published in Smallwoods magazine (Summer 2012 issue 47) - the Small Woods Association are at http://smallwoods.org.uk/.

New Medicinal Forest Garden Trust

The Medicinal Forest Garden Trust, was launched on 11th July 2012. This new voluntary organisation has charitable aims of promoting and supporting education and research relating to the sustainable cultivation and harvesting of medicinal trees and shrubs. The constitution allows for activities of courses, demonstrations, research projects, alongside promoting suitable accreditation and linking projects together.

Witch Hazel (Hamamelis virginiana) at Holt Wood

This is a great development as, when searching for information ourselves, we have found a lack of organisations with specific expertise in medicinal trees and shrubs. This new organisation will be a focus for developing links and sharing information. Contributions are most welcome, if interested then do get in touch with Anne at herbaid@herbaid.co.uk.