[Simon O]

Related to but slightly different to my other q just posted... I have a strip of mostly conifer wood adjacent to a field and the fence between them is fallen with rotted posts broken wires etc. The trees are fairly widely spaced. Is is ok to bring the fence line back by 10-20 metres into the wood so that animals - sheep and cows - could freely wander into the fringe of woodland. My thought being that this could give some additional shelter for winter/bad weather.
Simon O

[SallyintNorth]

I assume you own the woodland in question!

If there is a line down which you can put fence posts (which maybe is no, given your other post!) I can't see why not.  They'll get a lot of shelter from the trees being there, even if they can't get under them.  I think the equation is that trees give wind protection (and hence also weather being borne on that wind) for a distance of 6 times their height?

[Simon O]

Thanks Sally - I asked because you often see fields bordering wood but always the fence seems to run at the border. Yes we own the woodland. Karen has made a good point in my other post about electric and now I am thinking about stock-fencing the other 3 'sides' of the field - it is more a sort of semicircle bordered by a burn at the edge of our land - and running the electric through the wood or at the border of the wood (which is essentially the diameter of the semicircle). If the animals got past the electric fence they are still within our land and unlikely to completely escape. If this was not working out then it would be easy enough to subsequently stockfence the section where I had the electric. I also hope to subdivide the area into 2 or 3 for stock rotation - it is about 3 acres I think - but thinking further about what Karen said electric fence may be the best option for the subdividing, with less work at the outset and more flexibility afterwards.
Simon

[HappyHippy]

Hi Simon 
It's my understanding that woodland doesn't get taken into consideration when farmers make claims under the grant scheme (don't know what it's called cos us pig keepers get diddly squat  ) so that might account for why they are excluded from the fields (makes it easier to measure acreage and calculate payments)
But I agree with Sally, any stock will find a bit of shelter beneficial.
HTH
Karen x

[robert waddell]

under the old payment system you could claim for grazing in woodland (hill cow payment)
with single farm payment you cannot claim for roads woods and areas round buildings although part of your holding they are deemed non productive also ponds rivers etc
grants scheme is different to single farm payment although the two combine for environmental schemes 

[Fleecewife]

Hi Simon  remember that you can't use electric fencing, or at least electric mesh fencing, with horned sheep such as Hebrideans.  They can get their heads stuck, they start to twist and fight, the poles come out and loosen the mesh and within minutes they have hanged themselves.  Electric mesh seems to have a fatal attraction for horned sheep...... Even polled sheep can get caught by their fleece if they stick their heads through 

[Simon O]

Yes I knew about the mesh would tape be ok?

[Womble]

Yes, and don't I know it Fleecewife!   They're not even our sheep, but I still had to go out and wrestle one to the ground at midnight, to free its horns from the fence.  I kept thinking "I hope the neighbours aren't watching this!" 

(Just in case anybody's wondering, the sheep shouldn't even have been in that field, and I have now strengthened the boundary fence!!).

[Fleecewife]

Yes I knew about the mesh would tape be ok?

They shouldn't get tangled in tape, but they might just walk through it if they are woolly and don't feel the shock.  It's worth trying though especially as you have a stock fence beyond.

Womble - in our early days we once had the 'brilliant'  idea of making a small tupping pen out of electric fencing.  What dunces  . The ewes didn't like the tup we had put in so they tried to leg it, straight through the fence.  One of our sons found them and had to cut the fence to bits to rescue the ewes, all in the dark and howling gale.  That's why I always make such a big thing about electric mesh.  We do use it as a temporaray way of bringing in our sheep, not electrified, and only up for as long as it takes to funnel them into a hurdle pen.

[ellisr]

I use 3 strand electric rope as our fields are dual purpose for sheep and horse. It works fine with Ryelands and they are wooly, the bottom strand is only a few inches from the ground so that lambs can see it. I use the energiser on high for a week then turn it down and don't have a problem (unless I forget to charge the battery)

[Simon O]

Thanks this is useful info

[cooper956]

o few resons woodland may be fenced are stock can hide in it and be hard to find when looking them also makes rounding up harder when they tend to dart into the wood also  sheep can be more prone to flystrike i think round the trees and also hard to spot a ill sheep hideing also if there are any oak trees acorns are not good for sheep. i would fence it off  and if you want to put anything in have a gate into it so if you need to you can shut them out thats what we do with some of our areas between feild that where fenced off and planted  now the trees are big enough so the sheep dont eat and kill them  we put a gate in and let them of now and then

[Simon O]

Thanks for that info cooper

[robert waddell]

now cooper956 may be right in what he says   but and it is a big but
the woods are there for shelter some were planted just for that purpose  to prevent the wind just whistling straight on through a tree gives shelter one and a half times its hight