Writer and woodsman Rob Penn begins a year-long project to bring part of an abandoned woodland, Strawberry Cottage Wood, back to life.
Rob Penn has his first visit to Strawberry Cottage Wood
Oct 17, 2012
Rob starts work, introducing pigs to clear bracken and brambles and planning his tasks for the year. Felling a dead tree on his first day almost throws the whole project into jeopardy.
Pigs at work
Oct 24, 2012
Winter arrives in Rob's wood. In freezing weather he learns the ancient practice of coppicing and brings in the local woodland group to clear overgrown hazel trees. With tonnes of timber piling up he goes off in search of a new organic super-fuel.
Felling a tree
Oct 31, 2012
In the middle of winter Rob needs to make some money. He visits one of Britain's largest clear-felling conifer plantations, before making an ambitious attempt to fell one of the largest trees in Strawberry Cottage Wood. Tangled branches cause everything to go wrong.
At the sawmill
Nov 7, 2012
Rob Penn continues his year-long project to restore the abandoned Strawberry Cottage Wood, Monmouthshire. As spring arrives, new life emerges within the forest. A visit to a secret woodland allows Rob to see how tomorrow's trees might look, but his newly planted trees soon come under threat from the local squirrel population.
Rob makes charcoal
Nov 14, 2012
As summer arrives, the pressure is on Rob Penn to turn labour into profit in Strawberry Cottage Wood. He dips his toes into the beanpole industry, before learning how to make charcoal. With his costs spiralling, he needs to find a market for his product and convince people that UK charcoal can compete with products imported from abroad.
Rob throws a party
Nov 21, 2012
Rob Penn's year in Strawberry Cottage Wood is nearly at an end. After ten months hard work he gets a final assessment from the local conservation expert. He attends an international cricket match to hunt down the timber he felled in the winter, and throws a party for everybody who has helped him throughout the year.
