Woodland Heritage

09/11/2026

Recently, we welcomed a new group to our 31st Woodland to Workshop course in Herefordshire, and what a wonderful three days it was.

From woodland to sawmill to workshop, attendees followed timber every step of the way. The weather was kind, which always helps, and our tutors were tested from the outset with questions on everything from agroforestry and timber in construction to pest and disease management and coppicing.

Woodland to Workshop brings tree growers and wood users together, and it's always a joy to see those conversations take root.

A special thank you to the generous funders who support the course and to the tutors and hosts who make it possible. And to everyone who took part, thank you for bringing such enthusiasm and energy.

Interested in a future course? You'll find the details on our website: https://www.woodlandheritage.org/woodland-to-workshop

Whitney Sawmills | NMITE and the Duchy of Cornwall and Evolving Forests

12/10/2026

Which woodland or workshop have you always wanted to get into?

🌳A gate you have always wanted to open.
🌳A woodland you have passed for years, wondering what lies beyond the trees.
🌳A workshop where you would love to see the tools, the timber and the work in progress.
🌳A forester, maker or master craftsman you have always wanted to meet.

Tell us who, where and why.

We are planning Open Woods and Workshops 2027 and we want to hear your suggestions.

Nominate a place or a person in the comments. We will look at your ideas, make some approaches and see if we can open a few doors.

It might be somewhere famous. It might be somewhere known only to you.

Either way, we want to know. DM us or email [email protected]

🌟Thank you

08/10/2026

It's Week and we're proud to be supporting it 🌳

This week celebrates the people, businesses and organisations helping homegrown timber thrive. This year's theme is Commerciality through Connectivity, which looks at how stronger links between woodlands, supply chains and communities can help us make more of our own timber.

That's something we care about deeply. More than half of the UK's woodland is not productive, yet the UK is one of the three largest net importers of timber in the world. Bringing tree growers and wood users together is how we start to close that gap. Our Woodland to Workshop course does exactly that, and at James Wood we've planted 23,135 trees across 86 acres in the last two years.

We'd love to see what homegrown timber means to you. Share a photo of a local woodland, a favourite piece made from UK-grown wood or a maker you admire in the comments.

02/10/2026

Event: Alison Crowther MA RCA and Woodland Heritage
2 - 5pm

12 October 2026

We are pleased to invite you to a panel discussion with artist Alison Crowther in collaboration with Woodland Heritage from 2 to 5pm on Monday 12th October at Roche Court Sculpture Park.

Alison will discuss her current exhibition Anatomy of a Tree, now open at New Art Centre. The exhibition celebrates Crowther’s highly distinctive practice, in which the natural structures within a tree become both guide and inspiration for her finished carvings.

Our connection to our local woodland is central to Crowther’s practice, a concern shared with Woodland Heritage who champion the use of locally grown sustainable timber.

This event is complementary but there are limited spaces available, so please claim your ticket.

There will be an opportunity to make a donation on the day and the proceeds will support both Woodland Heritage (Charity No. 1041611) and The Roche Court Educational Trust (Charity No. 1109279).

Schedule:

2pm: Arrive Top Car Park and register

2.30pm: Panel Discussion with Q&A

3.30pm: Tea, coffee and cake

4pm: Tour of woodlands and sculpture in the grounds of Roche Court

5pm: Depart

To secure your ticket, book now via the link in our bio.

Woodland Heritage Alison Crowther Roche Court Educational Trust

22/09/2026

🌳 We’re on the hunt for acorns.

2026 is not a mast year for oak trees.
There are fewer acorns around than we’d like. But some trees have decided not to follow the crowd and produce acorns. These are the trees we’re looking for.

We need acorns from good parent trees to grow the next generation of oaks at James Wood.

So, if you know a healthy, vigorous oak that is:
🌳 straight and well formed
🌱 growing well in its surroundings
🌰 producing acorns this autumn
…we’d like to hear about it.

And if you have 30 minutes, a bucket and a willingness to hunt around under the tree, even better.

Pick them up. Discard any that float in water. Send us the sinkers, as they are more likely to germinate.

Help us grow better trees. Tag us or get in touch. The acorn hunt is on. 🌰

15/09/2026

How did our trees at James Wood cope with this year's drought? The honest answer is a mixed bag, and that's exactly why it's worth sharing.

Some trees didn't survive. But more came through than we expected, and a number have entered what we're calling a "false autumn", drying out at the top while holding onto a few green leaves lower down where there's more shade. It's not thriving, but it's not dying either. We'll know more once spring 2027 arrives.

There were some real surprises too. A white poplar became the first tree at James Wood to grow taller than a person, and we now have several following close behind. A black walnut seed we planted back in January kept germinating right through the drought against all odds. And while our self-sown native oaks held on through the heat, nursery-planted cork oaks in the very same spot often didn't, despite facing identical conditions.

Meanwhile, bracken and brambles kept growing regardless of the dry weather, smothering and pulling at young trees. We've started using a Robo Flail to manage this on our steeper slopes, much safer than a tractor and a real help to our team.

We’d love to hear how your woods coped - share your thoughts in the comments below.

Read the full update here: https://ow.ly/8FC850ZLN7p

06/09/2026

A material spotlight from our latest blog: Western Red Cedar. Naturally resistant to decay, low maintenance and a beautiful amber colour that silvers with age.

It's one of the reasons our trustee chose it to clad his home extension, sourced from a woodland just down the road.

Full story >> https://ow.ly/3zLf50ZzoGO

04/09/2026

Congratulations to everyone named on the Wood Awards 2026 shortlist!

34 projects have made the cut this year, chosen from more than 200 entries and covering everything from ambitious timber buildings to beautifully crafted furniture and objects. It's a fantastic reminder of the skill, creativity and sheer variety of wood-based design happening across the UK right now.

We love seeing the sector celebrated like this and we're sending our congratulations to every maker, designer and architect on the list -plus it's lovely to see some of our members in both the building and furniture sections. Good luck for the final judging!

>> https://ow.ly/UoP150ZIQLk

The Wood Awards

View the shortlist of the 2026 Wood Awards. The UK’s premier competition for excellence in architecture and product design in wood.

03/09/2026

Did you know more than half of the UK's woodland isn't currently productive? And we're one of the largest net importers of timber in the world, even though we have the land and the skills to do far more of it ourselves.

That's the gap Woodland Heritage exists to close, connecting the people who grow trees with the people who use wood.

Becoming a member is one of the most direct ways to help. You'll receive our Wood Culture Journal and get priority access to our Open Woods & Workshops events where you can see the work up close: from young woodlands like James Wood (86 acres, 23,135 trees planted in just two years) to a working sawmill.

🌳Join us and be part of turning UK woodland into UK wood, used well.

👉 https://ow.ly/GBrx50ZIxoN

16/08/2026

Ever wondered what happens to the timber cleared during ancient woodland restoration? PAWs sites (Plantation on Ancient Woodland) contains conifers planted decades ago, and when they're felled as part of restoration work, that wood doesn't go to waste.

In this blog, trustee Adrian Jowitt describes watching his cedar cladding milled on site with a mobile sawmill, right in the woodland where the trees grew.

Full story >> https://ow.ly/z9fi50ZzovR

Thanks to George of Devon Timber - using a Peterson Mobile Sawmill