Boggy Places

This bit of woods is known to me as Lower Bee woods. This particular patch, between the little groups of pre-existing Larch trees is known as Max woods, as its in memory of a dear departed friend, called Max Sing, who came to the UK originally from Malaysia.

Like so many bits of woodland up here, Maxwood is mostly bog, so this limits the diversity of tree species that can grow here. This photograph focuses on the boggiest bits of Max woods and as I hope you can see; it is largely comprising of Alders and highland Willows.


Hazel, Blackthorn and Birch seem to do well around the edges of bogs. Guelder roses also like bogs, but they are more difficult to source and there for are more of a rarity, which I am having to propagate on site.

The main reason for all these bogs and wet-land areas is the underlying granite. This impervious rock, dose not allow water to drain away through it, so then any kind of dip or depression in the ground, becomes a peaty bog, like this one.


Most of Max woods was planted in year 6 (winter 2006 into 2007), the big Alder in the back was planted in year 5 and a few Beech at the front which are still tiny, were actually planted in year 1.


On this second picture, Max's partner Sara inspects the woods.


Swamp trees such as I have planted here, in Max woods grow comparatively quickly, as opposed to other wild trees. I have discovered that they grow fastest of all if planted on the edge of a bog, with the best of both worlds i.e. with their roots in both saturated and breathable soil. Where I have planted these same trees in sinky floaty bog; they have grown much more stunted and slowly.


Lower Toe woods looks to have had a few unsuccessful and badly thought out attempts at planting it in the past. It has many areas of just Beech, which are themselves bonsai and stunted, but are in fact fully grown. Also many little clumps of half grown Larch. So here its been more a question of me filling in the gaps with the right sorts of trees, in order to increase the diversity of the whole woods.