I used to walk Callie, then Tasha, in these woods. I haven't for ages. We just haven't walked out to the end of the vineyard road very much recently. The last time was in the spring when those potatoes and tomatoes were planted out there in an unused vineyard parcel.
So, last week I headed out there just to see if that garden was harvested and was surprised by this. Half the woods have been cut down! The tree trunks are very neatly stacked on the ground waiting for some unknown (to me) fate. Before, it wasn't possible to see through the thick patch of conifers that I call the "piney woods." They were that dense. I could barely get to the inside through the thick, overgrown wall of shrubs and young tees that surrounded them. But once through the barrier, the woods became a magical place, its thick floor of pine needles muffled all sound from the outside world, a place where elves and fairies might have gathered. Now the woods have been laid bare, they themselves reduced to a thin veil, no longer able to keep secrets. I'm going to have to go out there again one of these days and walk through the remaining patch of trees.
I won't really miss them. They'll all grow back. For older views of the piney woods (and what's inside), type "piney woods" in the search box above and scroll through the photos.
Two things, Walt.... their most probable fate is to become woodchip for heating, as all trees in Centre-Val de Loire seem to be now.... if the tops were also stacked, then woodchip is a certainty.
ReplyDeleteSecondly, pines do not regrow after felling so they won't be coming back.... what might happen is another type of tree that does grow back will be planted and after the first cut in 20 to 30 years, those new trees will be allowed to grow back and the "coppice" growth will be regularly harvested after that at 15 to 20 year intervals.... until something comes along that will replace woodchip as an economic source of heating and the woods will have no value and be left for the wildlife and you and Tasha!