Woodland Courses

CHARCOAL BURNING

Charcoal burning is an ancient craft where a high quality and high value product is made from a low value and low quality timber.

This course takes you through the whole charcoal burning process. You will be taught about sourcing the raw material, siting of the kiln, laying the base and filling the kiln, lighting the kiln, controlling the burn, grading, bagging and marketing of the end product.

Your tutor, Ben May has 17 years experience in making charcoal, at one time making his main living just from charcoal production. This is a no nonsense, no holds barred course which goes into great detail on all aspects of charcoal burning.

This course is particularly well suited to those who are seriously looking into going into charcoal production as a living or as a sideline. 

Cost £150 including scrumptious lunches, tea, coffee and cakes!

Gift Vouchers are available for the Charcoal Making Course; an original and memorable present.

COURSE DATES:

MAY 18^{th -}19^th 2013 SAT & SUN

SEPTEMBER 21^st -22^nd 2013 SAT & SUN

Accommodation available locally

RUSTIC FURNITURE MAKING WORKSHOP 

Making rustic furniture is really enjoyable and allows you to bring out your creative side. We shall explore the main construction methods and styles of rustic furniture making, using a range of traditional hand tools and devices, and you will construct your own chair to your own unique design. 

We very often find that your character comes out in the design of the chair you make so we begin by discussing or drawing your ideas before getting hands-on with the timber and tools. 

We shall also take a trip to our woods so that you know how to source the best material. No previous experience necessary, just enthusiasm!

This is a particularly good course to do with a group of friends and so a special course can be organised for you at any time to suit you. Just email or give me a ring on 01837 811123 to discuss. 

Cost £180 including materials, scrumptious lunches, tea, coffee and cakes!

Gift Vouchers are available for the Rustic Furniture Making Workshop; an original and memorable present.

COURSE DATES:

JUNE 15th-16th 2013 SAT & SUN

0CTOBER 5^th -6^th  2013 SAT & SUN

Accommodation available locally 

HURDLE MAKING AND COPPICE MANAGEMENT COURSE

We will take you through every stage of making a traditional hazel hurdle. Not only does this include a relatively complex weave, but requires you to learn how to split individual rods in two with a billhook. You will also learn how to work the rods in such a way as to be able to build up a 3 ft hurdle to take home with you.

This course includes a trip to the woods to explain and demonstrate the sourcing of hazel material and how to manage coppiced woods. You will then go through the whole process of making your own hurdle – This is an intensive course, not for the faint hearted!

Cost £170 including materials, scrumptious lunches, tea coffee, and cakes!

Gift Vouchers are available for the Hurdle Making and Coppice Management Course; an original and memorable present.

NOVEMBER 2^nd -3^rd 2013 SAT & SUN

Accommodation available locally 

HEDGEROW WINE MAKING WORKSHOP  

Come and spend a fabulous couple of days on our lovely Devon Farm and take away with you the skills to produce your own home made wine – delicious. 

As well as your new found hobby you will take home a Demijohn of bubbling, fermenting ingredients that may be ready for you to enjoy a toast with by Christmas. 

Wine making is an absorbing and addictive pastime, a combination of alchemy, flair and method. This workshop should be the start of a lifelong passion; a few simple ingredients and some knowledgeable tuition will start you on the path to producing your own wine. 

Gathering, foraging, trading or possibly even growing your own produce will evolve into an activity that is only outshined by its consumption – Drink and Enjoy! 

A two day course demonstrating the techniques for producing homemade wine and other drinks such as Elderflower Champagne and Hedgerow Vodka. Your Tutor Lorraine Smith (Larry) is a second generation country wine producer with many years of experience herself.  You will finish the course having been shown the basics for getting started with your own home brewing and take home a demijohn of newly fermenting wine. 

Day One 

Introduction. Learn how to harvest from the Hedgerow; foraging for ingredients to ferment into wine. All methods and techniques are demonstrated and explained; including equipment needed, selecting and obtaining ingredients, getting started with the preparation of ingredients. 

Day Two 

Beginning the fermentation process, maturation and racking  and finally bottling, labelling and presentation. 

We explore the further possibilities for producing homemade drinks from foraging the hedgerow or your garden. You will see how to make hedgerow spirits of all sorts as well as learning how to produce superb elderflower Champagne all year round. 

The days will include refreshments on arrival, homemade lunch and afternoon tea. There will be an opportunity to purchase some basic equipment and of course sample some homemade drinks. 

Included to take home; Demijohn and labels, airlock, a gallon of fermenting (potential) wine. Notebook and pencil.

Refundable up to two weeks prior to course (minus £30 admin fee)
No refunds for cancellations within two weeks of course. 

Cost  £180 including a scrumptious lunch, tea, coffee and cakes! And equipment detailed as above. 

Gift Vouchers are available for the Wine Making Workshop; an original and memorable present

SEPTEMBER 14^th - 15^th  2013 SAT & SUN

Accommodation available locally 

HORSE LOGGING / WORKING HORSE COURSE  

Organised by arrangement with you at a time convenient to us both, this course transports you back into a different era and gives you the opportunity to gain as much “hands on experience” of working a heavy horse as possible and is tailor made to your needs. Depending on your requirements and level of experience we can start with the very basics and gradually give you more challenging horse logging work to do as your confidence increases. It is not a requirement for you to have worked with horses before as we will adapt the course to your needs and abilities. We can also teach you how to drive horses and embark upon field work should you require. 

This course is not just suitable for people who wish to pursue the practicalities of heavy horse husbandry or for those wishing to start working their own horses. We have also shared many wonderful course days with people who just wish to take a trip down memory lane. This often makes a wonderful Birthday or Christmas gift. 

Your tutor Ben May has been working in the woods with his horses for 17 years now and undertakes commercial horse logging jobs. He also has a farm upon which he does most of his agricultural work with his Shire horses. He is passionate about doing real work with his horses. This is a chance to come and experience one of the very few real working horse farms left in the UK. 

All our horses are trained by us and we are a registered Shire Horse Stud. We usually have a foal and a youngster or two we are bringing on.
 

Cost £150 per day including a scrumptious lunch, tea, coffee and cakes! 

plus £40 per additional person including food.

Accommodation available locally 

Gift Vouchers are available for the Horse Logging/Working Horse Courses; an original and memorable present. 

Dates available monthly by arrangement

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TAILOR MADE CRAFT COURSES FOR GROUPS 

Here at Lower Upcott Farm, we pride ourselves in being intensely practical. This is borne mainly from having to make a full time living from wood over the last 17 years – It is our livelihood but it is also our passion. 

This passion has developed into all aspects of our life so that we get great satisfaction not only from making things, but also from growing our own vegetables, eating our own meat and making our own delicious hedgerow wines. Come and experience and enjoy what we have to offer. 

Gift Vouchers are available for all our courses; an original and memorable present.

Should any clubs or groups wish to do courses, then any combination of the advertised courses can be arranged for a daily fee. Other courses which we have done in the past and which we can arrange for groups include:  

• Hedgerow winemaking
• Working woods the medieval way
• Hedgelaying
• Unlock the secrets to identifying timber
• Woodland walk and tree identification
• Tree folklore
• Making your own plant supports / trellis, etc.
• Bentwood chair making course
• Identification of woodland flora
• From Felling to Selling (making the most out of your woodlands)
• Survival courses
   

Groups wishing to come for a weekend or longer will be able to choose a number of courses to suit their interests. For large groups, we shall be able to give a choice of courses for each day to suit different interests.Just ring us to discuss your needs. - We will do our very best to make your time here a great learning experience as well as great fun.

TAILOR MADE EDUCATIONAL COURSES FOR GROUPS
School or college groups are always welcome and we are able to tailor the day’s activities to suit your needs.