Timber extraction by horse ---- Film and promotional work -- Horse logging courses Practical courses, five days long, conducted on a one to one basis on a working site


Our fully insured and experienced crew ensures quality work combining a traditional skill with modern sustainable forestry management- the natural way to work woodland

The advantages of using a professional horse logger to extract timber are;

- Selective thinning is economical as no extra trees are cut down than needed

-The low impact of horses leaves the forest floor in good condition

- No need for line thinning reduces risk of windblown trees

- Ensures your remaining standing trees are undamaged

- Ideal for wet, steep, rough and small plantations

- Leaves no timber behind on the forest floor

- Minimal disturbance to wildlife

- No pollution of waterways

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For the past twenty eight years I have worked and trained heavy draught horses in all road, field and forest operations across Ireland - a trade I learned in the traditional manner where it was passed down through my family from father to son. This heavy horse heritage and the range of work we do with various breeds of these magnificent horses can be viewed in the archive below. References are available on request.
Feel free to contact me if you require any further information.

Tom Nixon, Athenry, County Galway, Ireland
mobile; 086 038 4857
email; tomnixonheavyhorses@hotmail.com

Member of
Forest Training & Education Ireland Ltd.
British Horse Loggers

Friday, November 4, 2011

Horse logging courses

Horse logging courses
 
Five day long

One on one 
in a working woodland 

ongoing throughout
November, December and January


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Sunday, July 31, 2011

Sensitive sites


Research conducted by Coford and Waterford Institute of Technology found that 'horse logging is suitable on smaller sites or where woodlands were sensitively managed'
To read the full report 'Hardwood fuel from our new forests'  by Tom Kent and Seamus Dunne type Bioenergy News 2008 into the search box at www.seai.ie/Renewables


A good example of a sensitively managed woodland was Meikle Wood in Threaves Estate in Scotland where I worked fellow logger Jim Johnstone's Brabant (above) a larger breed of Belgium heavy horse alongside my own Mountain Ardennes (below)


The National Trust for Scotland had decided on horse power for timber extraction because this system would not only ensure the health of the standing trees but also mean the least disturbance to wildlife, their habitats and ancient earthworks within the wood.


With Threaves Castle in the distance another advantage of horse powered timber extraction is evident- the minimal impact of hooves on wet ground.


 For a full account of why this system was chosen for this sensitive woodland click www.nts.org.uk and then go into News, then Press Archive,  then 2008 to read 'Horsepower harnessed for Trust tree-felling' 22/09/08

Photos: Karl Munday, Senior Ranger, National Trust for Scotland
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Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Steep ground


A job where a good logging horse is invaluable is on very steep ground.
Here Prince, our stallion, hauls logs of up to a ton weight down a 70 degree bank and out to the roadside


Photos;  Jennifer O'Sullivan
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Thursday, June 16, 2011

Windblow


'Windblow' can be a major problem on high ground sites like this Spruce first thinning contract we are just finishing for another forest owner in the County Clare Wood Energy Project (CCWEP). It can be avoided by thinning the trees in a selective manner ensuring no straight lines are cut through the wood.
When woods are thinned by machine this is done in straight lines. These straight lines leave tunnels through the plantation which can allow wind to move at high speed, building up enough force to knock over some of the remaining trees. This can lead to substantial losses in the crop.


 The horses come into their own when extracting timber from such selectively thinned woodlands, as they can weave in and out through the irregularly spaced standing trees.
On this job we are working Ardennes mares Chincha (above left) alongside her daughter Lisa (below)

This job marks a year for Lisa working in the woods since we started her logging last June (see earlier post 'Lisa's first day in the wood') She has filled out and is settled into her work.
Chincha is in foal again and kept fit by working light loads.






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Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Media articles

 "Tom keeps 'Trojan' tradition alive" 
 Features, The Tuam Herald - 8 December 2010
www.tuamherald.ie


       "First ever heavy horse display in Ireland" 
   News, Ireland's Horse & Pony Magazine - May 2010
"Horse power: Ploughman comes to town"
by Sean MacConnell, Agricultural Correspondent, 
News, The Irish Times - 3 May 2010
www.irishtimes.com


"Horsepower-The answer for many forest owners"
by Aine O' Callaghan, Teagasc Forestry Development Officer 
Teagasc Todays Farm - March/April 2010
www.teagasc.ie


"Commercial horse logging today" 
Goforwood.info- 3 March 2010
www.goforwood.info

"Horse logging back in vogue" 
by Catriona Murphy, Farming Independent, 
Independent - 11 November 2008
www.farmingindependent.ie


   'Hardwood fuel from our new forests' 
by Tom Kent, Waterford Institute of Technology and Seamus Dunne,
Forest Service, Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Food
BIOENERGY NEWS 2008, Sustainable Energy Ireland
www.sustainableenergyireland.com
(type Bioenergy News 2008 into search box)



"Eco-echo from the past makes a comeback"  
by Michael Viney, Another Life, Weekend Review, 
The Irish Times - 5 July 2008 
www. irishtimes.com



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