No mystery about tree thinning

FOREST owners need to gather as much information as possible about thinning, said Teagasc Forestry Development Officer Áine O’Callaghan, at last week’s Teagasc/Forest Service event at Feakle, in Co Clare, on Steps to Thinning and Marketing your Timber.

Selling small sized timber from first thinning is a new venture for many forest owners, but the process is straightforward, according to Teagasc.

Denis Purcell from Feakle is one of the few forest owners in Co Clare who has gone through the thinning process twice. In 1988, his father planted 18 hectares with Sitka spruce, which has proved to be a very successful decision.