Activities

This ancient skill has been practiced in the UK for the last couple of thousand years as a means of producing a smokeless fuel that burns at a higher temperature than normal wood. In the Weald this was the original fuel that was used in the iron industry. These days we produce charcoal for people to cook sausages on (BBQ’s) and the fines(smaller dustier bits) are used to produce biochar, a fantastic soil improver.

As part of the woodland management trees are coppiced (cut in the winter months) as a ‘crop’ on a rotation around the woods to allow more light in, which in turn increases biodiversity and gives us lots of materials (wood) from which we can craft into useful and beautiful items.

Nature and people are at the heart of what we do at The Heartwood Project so we are always aiming to work in harmony with the natural cycles of the woods and the plants, animal and fungi within it. Woodlands are very good at growing (although much too slowly for us to generally notice) and for this reason we need to manage the different areas at different times of year. This can be raking up leaves in the grassland, trimming back brambles from the footpaths, clearing invasive species such as rhododendron, putting up bird boxes and habitat creation.

Working with clay and the earth has to be one of the oldest crafts the world over. Using a very old firing method called a clamp kiln, we are able to create some really interesting and useful items. It’s not always about creating a work of art, sometimes just playing with this malleable material will bring out all sorts of creative ideas

Weaving has a long tradition in this country and although many of the baskets we have in our homes are mass produced in poorer countries, there is still a strong tradition of basketry in the UK. Many different things can be woven from the small, napkin rings and bird feeders to the larger baskets and even traditional willow coffins!

Because the woodland is managed with traditional coppicing, there is an abundance of useable wood for creating structures. Anything from saw horses and boot pullers to sheds and our very own compost toilet which has been built using only wood from the woods and some reclaimed timber.