He showed us how the trees, vegetation and wild flowers changed with the seasons and talked about the animals that inhabited the woodlands and the relationships between them and their habitat. We learned that coppicing makes the trees vulnerable to deer which love to eat the young shoots, so pollarding is a better option as the new growth is too high for them to reach.
Oak trees featured large and Barry explained that there is a particular moth that lays its eggs in the oak tree. The caterpillars hatch and strip the leaves off the tree, then they in turn are eaten by migrating birds. The oak tree will then grow more leaves but will not bear acorns that year, but it will be immune to further attacks by the moths.
Barry's talks are always interesting and very enjoyable - and there were prizes for correctly identifying some woodland plants! A visit to see his protected woodland and orchid fields will be planned for next year.