Forestry tasters for young people
Are you a young person who is not sure what work you want to do? Have you always wanted to work outdoors? Do you love trees, but had no idea that you could be paid to work with them?
If so, then the Landworkers’ Alliance (LWA)’s Forestry and Woodland taster days could be for you!
Who: Each taster day is capped at 15 young people (18-28 years)
What: Four unique tasters exploring working with trees and woodlands
Where: Various working woodlands around Gloucestershire and Bristol
When: 2-3 June, 7-8 July, 25 October, 15 November 2023
Why: Because we love trees and we think you will too!
Find out more and apply here: https://landworkersalliance.org.uk/class/forestry-for-young-people/
Would you please pass this onto anyone you think might be interested in working in woodlands or forestry as a career?
What will we be doing each session?
The four sessions have been designed around different themes of woodland and forestry work. There will be a mixture of wellbeing, theory and practical sessions including group work. The main session will mimic normal working days, so please be prepared to start at 9am and finish at 5pm. These will be co-created events and we ask you to be engaged with lift sharing and tasks on the day including cooking and clearing.
Ecology & management (Friday 2nd – Saturday 3nd June) – This day will cover tree and plant identification, foraging for food (to accompany our lunch) and medicines, woodland management planning and income streams including charcoal burning. In the evening, we will light the kiln, cook on the fire and eat together. Dawn chorus (optional).
Billet making and charcoal burn (Friday 7th – Saturday 8th July) – This day will cover billet making and charcoal burning with use of splitting axes, sledge hammers and splitting wedges. We will learn how to prepare and load the kiln and set it alight.
Coppicing, whittling and chipping (Wednesday 25th October) – This day will cover coppicing with use of bow saws, loppers and pruning saws and chainsaw demonstrations. We will learn to cut and lay hazel and make timber products, including whittling, carving and making rammial woodchip.
Propagation, planting and woodland creation (Wednesday 15th November) – This day will cover the various ways to propagate trees including seed saving, sowing and grafting. We will consider ways of designing and implementing woodland creation and will learn various methods of tree planting.