Colleagues in Flintshire Woodlands hosted a group of final-year forestry students from the University of Wales Bangor before they graduated on a one-day tour to look at commercial forestry in a mixed woodland in north Wales.
The event gave students an opportunity to see and discuss commercial forestry in Wales at first hand as well as give the forest managers an opportunity to meet potential recruits of the future.
The students were able to learn from practising foresters and put into practice what they had learnt in the classroom. Topics covered mensuration which included an abbreviated tariff exercise and discussion on the optimum time for thinning in relation to species, site and machinery.
Despite much mechanisation within the industry, the students were reminded that the human element remains vital to a successful job. Another topic of discussion focussed on the importance of commercial forestry to a private estate and how to optimise returns for the client, and timing and planning of operations such as harvesting, marketing of timber and restocking.
The students enjoyed the opportunity of networking with experienced foresters and learning from their valuable knowledge, from Wales and further afield.