Forestry & Woodland Management in the New Forest
Arbor Bear Tree Specialists provides professional forestry and woodland management across the New Forest, Lymington and surrounding areas of Hampshire and Dorset, helping private woodland owners, estates, landowners and rural properties care for their trees and woodlands responsibly.
Woodland needs active, considered management to remain healthy, safe and resilient. Left unmanaged, trees can become overcrowded, access can deteriorate and opportunities to improve woodland structure, biodiversity and future regeneration can be lost.
Our approach combines practical forestry with professional arboricultural knowledge, looking beyond individual trees to consider the health, structure and long-term future of the woodland as a whole.
Wildfire Resilience & Woodland Firebreaks
With hotter, drier summers increasing the risk of wildfire, firebreak and fuel management is becoming an increasingly important part of responsible woodland management across the New Forest and Hampshire and Dorset.
Arbor Bear has practical experience creating and managing woodland firebreaks in both the UK and Australia, including work on Brownsea Island in Dorset and in the fire-prone conditions of Perth, Western Australia. This experience gives us a valuable understanding of how vegetation, woodland structure, access, terrain and available fuel can influence the way fire moves through a landscape.
Effective wildfire management is about more than simply clearing a strip through woodland. Firebreaks and fuel breaks need to be strategically positioned and appropriately maintained, taking into account surrounding vegetation, access routes, topography, prevailing conditions and the areas or assets that need protecting. Integrated into wider woodland management, they can help reduce available fuel, interrupt the movement and intensity of wildfire and provide valuable opportunities for fire suppression and emergency access.
Following the recent major wildfire in the New Forest, which affected more than 100 hectares of internationally important heathland and woodland, proactive wildfire resilience has become an increasingly important consideration for local woodland owners, estates and land managers.
Arbor Bear can incorporate firebreak creation, vegetation and fuel management, access management and ongoing firebreak maintenance into a wider woodland management programme, while carefully considering tree health, biodiversity, wildlife habitats and the character of the surrounding landscape.
Practical Woodland Management
The right approach depends on the age and species of the trees, woodland structure, condition, access, wildlife value and how the land is currently used or intended to be used in the future.
Arbor Bear can assess your woodland and recommend practical work to help achieve your objectives, whether that means improving woodland health, creating space for stronger trees to develop, managing hazardous or declining trees, improving access or encouraging natural regeneration.
Our woodland and forestry services can include:
-
Woodland thinning
-
Selective tree felling
-
Coppicing and woodland regeneration
-
Removal of dead, dangerous or declining trees
-
Management of overcrowded woodland
-
Tree and woodland inspections
-
Ride, track and access clearance
-
Management of storm-damaged trees
-
Woodland edge and boundary management
-
Habitat creation and deadwood management
-
Replanting and establishment of new trees
-
Ongoing woodland maintenance
Rather than treating woodland management as simple clearance, we take a selective approach based on what will benefit the site over the longer term.
Woodland Thinning & Selective Felling
Trees naturally compete for light, space, water and nutrients.
In some woodlands, selective thinning can improve growing conditions by reducing competition and allowing healthier or better-established trees more room to develop.
Careful thinning can also increase light reaching the woodland floor, encourage natural regeneration and create a more varied woodland structure.
Where felling is appropriate, Arbor Bear can identify trees for removal based on factors including condition, species, spacing, safety, woodland structure and your longer-term objectives for the land.
The result should not simply be fewer trees. It should be a woodland that has been considered as a whole.
Managing Woodlands for Wildlife & Biodiversity
Woodlands are complex habitats, and good management does not always mean making them neat.
Standing deadwood, fallen timber, veteran trees, woodland edges and areas of dense vegetation can all provide valuable habitats. Where safe and appropriate, retaining some of these features can support insects, fungi, birds, bats and other wildlife.
Arbor Bear can incorporate habitat creation and biodiversity considerations into practical woodland work, including retaining suitable deadwood, creating habitat piles and managing vegetation to encourage a varied woodland environment.
Our aim is to balance the practical needs of the landowner with the ecological value and long-term health of the woodland.
Woodland Management for Estates & Private Landowners
The New Forest contains everything from small private copses and wooded gardens to substantial estates and rural properties.
Arbor Bear provides woodland management for private landowners, country properties, estates, farms, equestrian properties and commercial land, with work tailored to the scale and character of each site.
We can undertake one-off projects or help establish a programme of ongoing management, prioritising work according to tree condition, safety, access and the longer-term objectives for the property.
For owners who have inherited or purchased land with established woodland and simply aren't sure where to begin, we can inspect the site and help identify sensible priorities.
Felling Licences & Protected Woodland
Forestry work can be subject to legal and environmental controls.
Depending on the scale and nature of the proposed work, a Forestry Commission felling licence may be required before trees can legally be felled. Other protections or designations can also affect what work can take place.
Before significant woodland felling begins, the relevant requirements should therefore be established.
Where protected trees, Conservation Areas or other restrictions apply, we can help identify the appropriate next steps and ensure work is planned around the relevant permissions.
Our approach is simple: understand the woodland first, establish what can appropriately and legally be done, then carry out the work professionally.
Woodland Regeneration & Replanting
Good woodland management is as much about what comes next as what is removed.
Following thinning or felling, opportunities may exist to encourage natural regeneration, introduce appropriate new trees or improve the age and species diversity of the woodland.
Where appropriate, Arbor Bear can advise on replanting and the establishment of new trees, considering the existing woodland, site conditions and the owner's longer-term aims.
This creates a more considered cycle of woodland management rather than treating felling as the end of the process.
Need Advice About Your Woodland?
If you own or manage woodland and are unsure what work is required, Arbor Bear Tree Specialists can provide professional, practical advice.
We can assess the condition of your trees and woodland, identify priorities and recommend an appropriate programme of work based on tree health, safety, woodland structure, biodiversity and your plans for the land.
From selective thinning and woodland regeneration to tree safety work and ongoing management, Arbor Bear provides experienced forestry and woodland management across the New Forest and Hampshire and beyond.