Small Woodland Owners' Group (SWOG)

News & Events

  • December 2015 Newsletter

    Wafted in on an unseasonably warm breeze, amid cries of ‘I don’t know where the year’s gone’, the December SWOG newsletter is a seasonal offering of peace and contemplation. There is news of the 2016 RFS Excellence in Woodland Award, a new registration scheme initiated by the Surrey & Sussex Coppice Group to put owners…

  • Turbosawmill Demonstration Day

    Thanks to Matt Kenyan the new UK distributor of Turbosawmills for bringing to our attention the demonstration day he is putting on together with the Jake Peterson, the designer of the mill.

  • Survey – do you get a commercial return from your wood?

    Christine Meadows,  a Forestry and Woodland Management degree student at Plumpton College has contacted us with a request for woodland owners to fill in a short questionnaire.  Her particular interest is in how well  small woodland owners understand and feel able to address the opportunities for commercial return from their woodlands.

  • November 2015 Newsletter

    With the mists swirling around in November, prepare yourself for the mellow fruitfulness of the SWOG newsletter. Resilient woodlands – preparing for an uncertain future Thirty Years in Wilderness Wood – a review of Chris Yarrow’s fascinating story about his Sussex woodland Trees on the telly – a round-up of recent broadcasts about woodlands, including…

  • Farm Business Innovations 2015

    The Farm Business Innovation Show is for more than just the diversifying farmer, we have leading woodland and forestry experts speaking across the two days (11th & 12th November, NEC Birmingham) who can help you reach your financial, sustainability and rural business goals. This, combined with experts in areas including planning, funding and rural tourism, makes this…

  • Free Woodland Restoration Workshop

    We are indebted to the Woodland Trust for inviting woodland owners to a free woodland restoration workship.  Please contact Jim Smith-Wright (details below) if you are interested in attending. Friday 4th December in Laughton, East Sussex 11 am to 4pm This will include sessions on woodland management, planning and grants available. The afternoon session will…

  • Free Consultancy for Foresters and Timber Processers

    Thanks to Mathew Woodcock of the Forestry Commision for alerting us to this useful offer. FACE – the Forest Advisory Consortium – are pleased to support Grown in Britain Week by offering all forestry and timber processing businesses operating in England a free 30 minute telephone consultancy from Monday 12th to Friday 16th October. This…

  • October 2015 Newsletter

    A glorious autumn is well under way, but once you’re back inside, take a look at the latest newsletter. Only 54 % of woodland owners and managers believe climate change will affect their woodlands – read more about the results of the 2015 British Woodland Resilience Survey, as well as a timely feature on foraging for…

  • September 2015 Newsletter

    The September newsletter contains plenty of news, features and appeals to complete woodland surveys. The Forestry Commission and Sylva want to hear your views – so tell them! Read about Freddie During’s tree-climbing course on the Isle of Wight. How about a trip to the Harcourt Arboretum near Oxford, the oldest botanic garden in the country? There are a number…

  • Making woodlands work survey

    England’s woods are a crucial part of the English countryside that provide a range of benefits to their owners and in doing so, enhance our wider landscape, ecology and economy. Woodland owners play an important role in helping to grow and expand woodland in Britain, while boosting their businesses and the forestry sector. The Forestry Commission wants…

  • August 2015 Newsletter

    The latest SWOG newsletter is a sun-filled extravaganza of woodland entertainment.   First, our good friends at Bentley are offering an early-bird discount to the 20th anniversary woodfair on 18-20 September. There are wonderful contributions from woodland owners: George Smith explains why he decided to buy a wood and describes the sheer fun it gives him…

  • Artizans of Wood – Roundwood Timber Framing Course

    Earlier this month I attended the first roundwood timber framing course run by Artizans of Wood at the Dangstein Conservancy in Rogate. The course showed us how to construct a cruck or ‘A’ frame style building from round and somewhat irregular poles.