Hi everyone. A big question for you.

[Bofh]

Hello, I've only been kicking around the forum on and off for a few days and thought I'd better check my manners and say hello.

I live in Dartford Kent and have been working in IT for the NHS for the last 15 years, unfortunately life took a tumble for me last year and I've been off work since.

Things are slowly getting better and I hope to be back on my feet soon, this forum looks like it might play an important role for me, and I hope I can also contribute to the forum. Whilst I've spend as much of my life as possible surrounded by nature, I'm embarrassed at my lack of knowledge, and that needs to change

One of the many wonderful aspects of the Internet has to be forums. Where else can you find such a wide range of knowledge in one place, with a shared enthusiasm to match

I'm sure you're wondering what my question might be. Well during the last few months, I've been thinking hard about the question "What would make you happy". I'm sure by now you might guess that I've been unwell due to mental health problems But unwell or healthy, the question is still something important to all of us and something to consider.

Whilst there are many things that might make me happy, one overwhelming urge has been with me for a very long time.

I've recently been offered the chance of a plot of land within a larger plot of Forrest. Whilst I wont have the opportunity to own the land I have the chance to develop it in a number of ways.

I hope to establish a Truffle plantation if logistics permit me to do so. Clearly there is a commercial aspect to this, I do intend to draw a future income from my investment. But I'm also extremely conscious of the environment I'll be working with and any impact.

I have spent years pondering and planning over woodland, how I could best utilize it to its full potential, whilst maintaining or improving the overall habitat.

Unfortunately due to the nature of my intended venture, many of my previous plans will not work. So I'm now looking into all and any possible uses that I could put into play. Whilst my main interest will be the trees and the soil around them, I also want to consider the land around the trees and what use it could be put to.

Grazing, cultivation of plants and or crops, live stock etc.

Sorry if I've rambled on a little, I couldn't decide where a post of this type should sit so I thought I'd tag it on to my hello.

I look forward to any advice you may have.

[The Woodman]

Hi Bofh

I'm glad you have a postive interest in the future involving trees and woodland!

It might be useful if you could expand and tell us a little bit more about your plot e.g. size, some description of ground cover and woodland structure, age of trees, water supply, etc.

Knowing a little bit more might help WABbers come up with relevant thoughts!

Good luck.

[Dogghound]

Hello BOFH welcome to WAB, goodluck with your project, you will certainly get plenty of advice on what to do on here. As Woodman says expanding on it a little would help us help you.

[Deb London]

Hi Bofh,

Welcome to WAB.

If I owned woodland the first thing I'd think about is getting my chainsaw licence and all the relevant training/insurance. I'd then look into coppicing parts of the wood. Does woodland managed like this make a profit? No idea, but personally I think that a well-managed coppiced woodland has a lot to offer wildlife.

Can we see pictures of your woodland?

Deb

[Bofh]

Thanks for the replies. I've not yet seen the plot with my own eyes so its a little difficult to say. A good friend of mine knows the land well and has arranged for me to view it in a week or two.

The basics are, a five acre plot of what I assume used to be grazing land of some description. The site is surrounded by mature/ancient woodlands on all sides, the owner has been looking into funding to return this land back to woodland for sometime.

I'm eager to have a look and start exploring the possibilities. At the moment all I have is google maps

So this is really more about potential ideas, everything from Alpacas to Honey Bees, Hazel nuts and Coppice products to Truffles considered

The real challenge is to make as many possibilities work together in harmony, not an easy task The down side is that due to the Truffles, I wouldn't be in a position to allow others onto the land, so it cuts out a great deal of my previous plans. I'm mainly looking for things to produce and harvest, but it has to start somewhere.

A successful commercial venture should then allow me to invest in more land, then I can start to move more towards my previous ideas involving bringing people in to participate, be it shooting, fishing, Nature courses, therapy groups, woodland experiences etc.

Bofh

[sunnydale]

Hi Bofh

Welcome to WAB!

Best of luck with your project. Sounds daunting - but very exciting too!

Tracey

[The Woodman]

Bofh,

From a very quick search on Google, I see there are ten vineyards in Kent. If your sheltered plot is not shaded but protected from frost and winds by the surrounding woodland, why not consider growing grapes.

The nearest vineyard to Dartford is at Staple, near Canterbury. I'm not suggesting you start the whole shooting match but growing grapes on contract or to sell on the open market might be worth considering.

You say the owner wants to revert this land back to woodland - is there not a potential conflict there if you want to do something else with it?

[turkeyneck]

Hi Bofh

Well........seeing as I don't know much about these things, I'd just like to say hello and a big welcome from one of those 'lacking in knowledge'

I will be keeping an eye on this post though as I can see it's going to be a good 'un.

Welcome

Lee