Pollarding

Pollarding is a traditional silvicultural practice that closely resembles coppicing but differs fundamentally in the height at which the tree is cut. Instead of cutting at ground level, pollarding involves removing the upper branches and crown of a tree at a height of two to three meters above the ground, typically well out of the reach of browsing livestock, deer, and other herbivores. The tree then responds by producing a dense head of vigorous new shoots from the swollen top of the trunk, known as the pollard head or bolling.

Historically, pollarding was an essential management tool within wood pastures, common lands, and historical hunting forests, where land had to serve the dual purpose of providing timber and grazing pasture. The harvested poles were used for animal fodder, firewood, and structural materials, while the pasture below remained fully accessible to animals. Beyond its historical utility, pollarding is celebrated today for its immense ecological value; the regular cutting stresses the tree in a way that induces early maturity and decay features, creating hollows, deadwood, and craggy bark that support rare insects, bats, and epiphytic lichens, while dramatically extending the overall lifespan of the tree.

Tree species often pollarded include Common Hornbeam, European Beech, Pedunculate Oak and White Willow.