What would we ever do without wood?

WHAT with trying to find the right wood-burning boiler to heat my house and engage a tree doctor who could wield a chain saw with the finesse of a brain surgeon, my mind was full of sawdust and two short planks all week.

It was, therefore, appropriate that I should spend the Sunday afternoon at The Irish Natural Forestry Foundation’s (INFF) sustainable forestry project at Manch, near Enniskeane in West Cork.

The Manch Project, the foundation’s demonstration site set on 100 acres of forest belonging to the Conner family at Manch, was developed through a combination of Forest Service funding schemes for new and old woodlands.