Upcoming Events
DWOSL FIELD DAY
SAT 29/10/11, 11am, Teevickmoy, Stranorlar, John Jackson's Forest
ADDING VALUE TO OUR TIMBER; COST OF HARVESTING THINNINGS
DWOSL PLANTING SITE 30 SPECIES & SALE OF SAWHORSES, FIRE BEATERS, HIGH-VIS VESTS ETC.
PAST EVENTS
RASLRES Wood Energy Seminar – Building Local Wood Heat Markets
14th June 2011, 1:30 pm, Villa Rose Hotel, Ballybofey, Co. Donegal
A report can be found in the Autumn Edition 2011 of the DWOSL Newsletter.
DWOSL 4th Annual General Meeting
Thursday, 31st March 2011, 8pm, Abbey Hotel, Donegal Town
At a lively AGM of the Donegal Woodland Owners Society Limited (DWOSL) the main topics of discussion included timber harvesting and rising timber demand, the wood energy market, forest machinery and training.
DWOSL firmly believe that Farm Forestry must double Ireland’s forest cover by 2030, thereby creating sustainable jobs throughout Ireland, while feeding the growing demand from our timber processing industries. With our tree growth competitive advantage farm forestry is also providing a vital range of ecosystem services and producing very valuable home-grown energy.
DWOSL members are convinced that now is the time to grow this proven, labour intensive industry, rooted in Ireland, for the benefit of Irish citizens and the environment.
“Our trees don’t know recession, just growth. We now live in a very challenging climate, lets all treat this natural resource with due respect. Farm foresters want to invest in and fast track this sector”, stated John Jackson, DWOSL Chairman.
A meeting with the Minister Simon Coveney, Agriculture, Marine and Food, with responsibility for Forestry, is being arranged.
Forest Walk, Talk & Tea - on DWOSL Leader Projects and Thinning of Conifers
Sat, 30th October 2010, 2 pm - Farm Forest of John Coyle, Killycreen, Ramelton
A Forest Talk was given on Selective Thinning of a 20-year old conifer woodland, detailing costs, procedures, forest
management and tourism from the contractor and forest owners’ perspective. Further information was given
at the day about the successful 2009 and proposed 2011 DWOSL LEADER Project.
Teagasc Growers group Conference
October 21st at Camphill Community, Ballytobin, Callan, Co. Kilkenny
see Teagasc Forestry webpage for further details:
Click here
A Sub-Group of the DWOSL Committee attended the event on behalf of the DWOSL.
RASLRES - Wood Energy Study Tour
10-13 Oct 2010, Highland & Islands, Scotland
Read the full Report with kind permission by Bernadette Phelan, WDC
Field Day in cooperation with PRO SILVA Ireland
Time: Sat 2nd Oct 2010, Thomas Becht's Woodland & Organic Farm, Doorian, Glenties
The field day was a great success and attracted keen interest from members of the DWOSL and PRO SILVA Ireland alike. A diverse range of woodlands and the different stages of conversion were looked at. This field day was a great opportunity for private forest owners to learn about close-to-nature forestry and to get practical advice on how to convert their own woodland.
Basic and Advanced Chainsaw Courses in cooperation with Teagasc and the FTEI
Members of the DWOS participated successfully in a basic and an advanced chainsaw course during the month of June 2010. The courses were organised through Teagasc and FTEI.
Forest Walk on Thinning of Broadleaves
11th May 2010, 2 pm - Farm Forest of John Jackson,Teevickmoy, Stranorlar
Teagasc and the Forest Service in association with the Donegal Woodland Owners Society were organising a forest walk to the topic: Thinning of Broadleaves at the farm forest of John Jackson.
John Jackson, chairman of the DWOS welcomed all members and interested people from the public. Steven Meyen from the Teagasc introduced the selection process of suitable future crop trees. He explained how to measure the height of a tree and the two stick methode which eases the selection of trees to be thinned out. Martin Regan the local Forest Inspector adviced that a General Felling License is necessary if any trees are cut. It can be optained for a maximum of 5 years. Meike Siebel, Forester of the DWOS pointed out that the DWOS offers a range of services which can be helpful such as assisting with the application work, giving advice on the different managment options and assisting the practical work by offering competitive rates for fully qualified and inssured chainsaw and machine operators.
During the event it was explained:
- when to consider thinning a broadleaf forest for the first time,
- how to select Potential Crop Trees,
- which trees should be marked for removal and
- how to organise the work
Evening Seminar on Pre-commercial Thinning and Nature Oriented Forest Management
19th May 2010, 8 pm - Finn Valley AC Center, Stranorlar, Co. Donegal
An evening seminar was given on Wednesday 19th of May 2010 at 8 pm in the Finn Valley AC Centre in Stranorlar. Prof. Stefan Ruge (Fields of specialisation: International Forest Management and Botany) from the University Rottenburg gave a presentation on Pre-commercial Thinning and Nature Oriented Forest Management.
Topics of the evening seminar include:
- Introduction to the Donegal Woodland Owners Society
- Forests and Forestry in Germany
- Pre-commercial Thinning
- Nature Oriented Forest Management
The event was a great opportunity for all Donegal Forest Owners to get an insight into other management options practiced on the Continent.
The event was held as part of the annual study tour of the University of Rottenburg which is the former University of Meike Siebel, Forester of the DWOS.I