Oak Furniture Land

Oak is a relatively slow growing tree, so it is not surprising that many people wonder just how much land is needed to satisfy the demand for oak furniture. The answer is that, with proper management, the supply of oak should be inexhaustible.

Measuring woodland

All woodland can be measured to determine how fast the timber in it is growing. This will be affected by such factors as how well suited the climate, soil and drainage is to the species being grown. The rate of growth is expressed as the Yield Class. Slower growing trees have a low Yield Class number, faster growing trees a high Yield Class number.

Oak on a moderately well drained fertile site would typically have a Yield Class of 5 or 5.5. This means that one Hectare of that woodland will produce 5 or 5.5 tonnes of wood every year. At Right Price Furniture sales from our ranges of oak furniture amount to approximately 400 tonnes of oak a year, so the oak furniture land requirement is 400/5 = 80 Hectares of land.

Diversity is good for wildlife

This does not mean that 80 Hectares (about 200 acres) of woodland is completely cleared every year. Forestry is a crop where individual plants (trees) are constantly being removed to allow more space for those remaining to grow to full size. This practice is known as thinning and will happen throughout the lifetime of a stand of trees.

So, within the woodland as a whole will be stands of new plantings, young woodlands, middle-aged woodland and only a small proportion of mature woodland ready for clear felling and replanting. This diversity in ages is helpful to plants and wildlife as it provides a series of environments each suited to different species.

For more information on British woodland, visit the website for the Forestry Commission.