|
One option to prevent deer from damaging coppice regrowth was described recently in Habitat Management News (BW 11: 47-48), that of cutting the coppice poles above the browse height of deer. The option usually considered, but sometimes not applied on the grounds of cost, is that of fencing. A number of lower-cost fencing techniques are available. These reduce costs by taking advantage of the fact that coppice regrowth needs to be protected only for several years, after which the fence can be removed and erected around another coup.
A review of temporary and reusable fencing has been published by the Forestry Commission (FC). This includes specifications and assembly details for two types of wire netting and a high-tensile plastic mesh. A fence height of 1.5m is recommended as a barrier against Fallow Deer Cervus dama, Roe Deer Capreolus capreolus and Muntjac Deer Muntiacus reevesii, with a reduced height of 1.2m used against Roe Deer only when the area enclosed is less than 2.5ha. In addition, for Muntjac Deer it is recommended that the netting should be lapped by 150mm on the ground and pegged or turfed, as for Rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus fencing. It is expected that savings of 25-30% will be attained by using this form of lightweight fencing compared with the cost of more traditional post-and-wire fences. Practice Note 9, Recommendations for Fallow, Roe and Muntjac Deer Fencing: New Proposals for Temporary and Reusable Fencing, can be accessed, with the appropriate software, from the FC website www.forestry.gov.uk or obtained free from the distributors, Telelink (address as in Solutions from FACT above).
A readily moved and potentially even more cost-effective form of metal deer fencing which is not included in FC Practice Note 9 has been tried at Bramley Frith wood in north Hampshire. This is the concrete block and metal-mesh fencing which is used around building sites. It is possible to purchase this fencing fairly cheaply at the end of its period of use on a site. Fencing panels 3.5m long and 2m high, the clips and the concrete blocks have been bought for Bramley Frith at the equivalent of £5.40 per metre. It has been found that four people can erect 50 panels in half a day. The main disadvantages are that the concrete blocks are heavy, it is not Rabbit-proof on its own (the blocks create a gap beneath the fence) and it can be considered to look out of place in the countryside. For further details on its use at Bramley Frith, contact Andrew Cleave or Lee Morgan on 01256 882094 or e-mail: info@bramleyfrith.co.uk A more natural alternative to wire fencing is chestnut paling. The effectiveness of this form of fencing as a protection for coppice against browsing by Fallow Deer and Roe Deer has been studied by Ray Tabor at Shadwell Wood, Essex (Quarterly J of Forestry 93: 197-203). The paling was 1.8m high, with a nominal 75mm gap between the pales. A 1.2ha block of coppice which was fenced in 1992 had deer activity and coppice damage measured from 1990 to 1998. The proportion of browsed coppice shoots in the block was 0.23 (average) when protected by the chestnut paling, 0.52 when protected by dead-hedging and 0.84 without protection. The fencing was found to be effective in excluding Fallow but not Muntjac Deer. It was noted that Muntjac were able to squeeze through a 100mm gap between the pales. Such gaps and larger were not infrequent as the pales aged and bowed. The chestnut paling was found to have the advantages of being effective against Fallow Deer, quick and easy to erect using volunteers, and easily moved once the regrowth was tall enough to be no longer at risk.
|
|
