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New Blog
1 June 2013, 22:55,
#1
New Blog
Some may know we have an area of woodland which earns us a small income, and which I've viewed in vague terms as a long-term bug-out location, should it be needed.

Over the last couple of weeks I've come across some insights that have caused me to re-think and focus a lot more on the woodland, with long term sustainable management and food production in mind.

The new blog will track my thoughts in real-time as I develop and refine our plans for the wood, as well as diarising the activity there. I know there are people on the forum with much more experience of growing and permaculture than I have, so any comments will be most welcome!

http://www.sustainablescottishwoodland.blogspot.co.uk

Hope people find it interesting to look through.

Tarrel
Find a resilient place and way to live, then sit back and watch a momentous period in history unfold.
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2 June 2013, 13:53, (This post was last modified: 2 June 2013, 14:00 by ObongoPox.)
#2
RE: New Blog
You're on the North shore(ie Black Isle)of Moray Firth.I extrapolate this from the South-West looking pic.I think you should break your goals up into 90 day blocks.Best of luck.

Aren't you worried about being so close to obvious nuke targets like RAF Lossiemouth and the other one(name eludes me)?

Should have been question mark after "North shore".
Suburban neighbours= stranger- danger.
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2 June 2013, 19:24,
#3
RE: New Blog
I am very envious of your woodlands,..what an opportunity. For me the one pity is that everything is in blocks, you have a great variety of deciduous trees but it would have been so much better for the wood, wildlife and most future activities if it was more of a mixed planting

I like the idea of the nursery, this will be vital for the long term engagement of the wood,.. without seeing the wood myself, I would be thinking of removing some of the firs either from removing dead trees or trees that are large enough for selling, or simply through thinning out, and putting deciduous trees in their place, providing the trees that are removed leave enough light for you do do so.

The camping is a good idea,.. everything you do will cost you, and camping will offset the cost a bit, but I would be very careful in how I went about it, I wouldn't want the normal camping type site, there is far too great a risk of fire for that, what would be nice is something like a scouts camp, or forestry education campers,... campers that are monitored

I wish you well with it all, whatever you do
A major part of survival is invisibility.
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2 June 2013, 19:30,
#4
RE: New Blog
I have been considering buying some woodland for some time now but the price they want down here is just sillyBig Grin and the smaller the piece of land the MORE money they want for it...crazy!Angry
Some people that prefer to be alone arent anti-social they just have no time for drama, stupidity and false people.
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2 June 2013, 20:28,
#5
RE: New Blog
@ Highlander - You've pretty much nailed what I'm intending to do. I'm planning on thinning around 10% of the Noble crop and the intention is, absolutely, to replant with native broadleaves. There are some natural glades, from where some of the Nobles failed to thrive. They tend to be in low spots, so I think it may be due to wet ground. I might put Alder there. They like wet conditions. For the camping, I'm thinking of a bushcraft / eco-camping offer, with just one site initially. Pre-erected canvas bell-tent(s) for 4-6 people in total, with a private covered dining area and composting loo. It would appeal to those who want to try living off-grid, might be interested in the woodland, but don't want to rough it too much! People seem to be prepared to pay large amounts of money for this kind of thing.

@Bigpaul; you have my sympathies. We first started looking down south, then realised how much more we could get for the money in Scotland. You're right; going bigger definitely gives you better value per acre, although it will obviously cost more overall.

@Obongo; yes, we're near the Black Isle, but not on it. The woodland is fairly exposed to Lossiemouth (and I think you're probably thinking of Kinloss), but our house is a few miles further inland (abt 25 miles from Lossie as the heat-flash flies) and is shielded by an escarpment. The property is 200 years old, built with 2 ft thick walls, and one end is partly below street level, so I do have plans to create a fall-out refuge in there if necessary. We should be OK as far as heat flash and blast damage are concerned, unless something drops off-target in our direction. But you can't be totally risk-free. It's nuclear war we're talking about!

Thanks for all your comments guys.
Find a resilient place and way to live, then sit back and watch a momentous period in history unfold.
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