When a local scout leader from Liphook rang to ask about taking some birch wands for their scouts I was intrigued.
It turns out that the scouts are on a camp this weekend in the Wye valley and planning to hold a coracle race. When the scrub grows up very thick some of the birch is foreced to grow as long thin shoots which would be very suitable for weaving, quite like withies or hazel sun shoots.
I left this area of scrub intentially a few years ago to provide a source of future birch products, rather than cutting (or even worse spraying) as soon as it appears I'm trying to introduce a rotational approach and its time for this area to be cut this winter. I will be cutting for besoms, bean poles, pea-sticks and faggots, as I have not use for these thin shoots it's great to allow the local scouts to use the and it's saving me some work as well.
I am very pleased at the way we are starting to find more uses for the birch, it all helps to raise awareness of how the commons would have been managed for centuries, promote local products and move towards a more sustainable management approach in the future. I look forward to hearing how the coracles perform and another use of birch to add to the list. I've been promised some photos of the birch coracles and we've invited the scouts to come out and do some conservation work on the commons in the future.
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