Nature takes over

Most of the woods around us are not very old. Patches are cut from time to time when the trees get too tall or old. I think a lot of people use the wood on their land for firewood. You can see when a landowner cuts down a patch of woods, he cuts the logs into one-meter lengths and stacks them to season for a year or two before they start disappearing. Some people sell their firewood, others keep it for personal use.

A stump decomposing in the woods.

It doesn't take long for the woods to regenerate. This stump along our walking path down through the woods to our north was likely cut within the last five years. The clearing where it's located has already grown thick with tall saplings. It almost feels like a small jungle. After a while the trees will mature and the undergrowth will be shaded and thin out a little. It's a pattern I've noticed in most of the woods around us over the years.

Commercial forests are maintained all around our region as well. They grow oak and other hardwoods as well as conifers. Not far from here is la Forêt de Tronçais, famous for producing much of the oak that wine barrels are made from. While growing, many forests are maintained as wildlife habitats and hunting grounds. When the time is right, large patches are harvested then replanted or allowed to regrow naturally.