What do you think?
Rate this book
The Woodland Way: A Permaculture Approach to Sustainable Woodland Management
Ben Law is an experienced and innovative woodsman with a deep commitment to practical sustainability. Here he presents a radical alternative to conventional woodland management that creates biodiverse, healthy environments, yields a great variety of value-added products, provides a secure livelihood for woodland workers and farmers, and benefits the local community. The author views the separation of agriculture from silviculture as unnecessarily limiting and argues for a new approach to planning that will encourage the creation of sustainably managed woodlands for the benefit of people, the local environment, and the global climate. Although specific to Britain, the principles of The Woodland Way will be understood by foresters worldwide. This brilliant book covers every aspect of woodland stewardship from both a practical and philosophical standpoint. Ben Law writes from the heart after long years of struggle with a whole host of naysayers who tried to convince him by fair means and foul to give up his vision for a renaissance in the countryside.
Paperback
First published November 1, 2001
About the author
Ben Law
22 books12 followersBen Law lives and works at Prickly Nut Woods in West Sussex, where apart from making a living from coppicing he trains apprentices and runs courses on sustainable woodland management, ecobuilding and permaculture design.
He is author of The Woodland Way, a permaculture approach to sustainable woodland management and The Woodland House, which charts the building of his unique cruck framed home in the woods. The building of his house was filmed for Channel 4's 'Grand Designs' programme and proved to be the most popular program of the series. Ben now runs occasional open days in response to the popular demand.
Ben's third book The Woodland Year, was published on September the 12th 2008.
He is author of The Woodland Way, a permaculture approach to sustainable woodland management and The Woodland House, which charts the building of his unique cruck framed home in the woods. The building of his house was filmed for Channel 4's 'Grand Designs' programme and proved to be the most popular program of the series. Ben now runs occasional open days in response to the popular demand.
Ben's third book The Woodland Year, was published on September the 12th 2008.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 2, 2026
A thoroughly inspiring introduction to woodland work and life for the present day. Ben’s system weaves together traditional styles of woodland management (namely coppice) with permaculture-inspired forestry design, grounded in a solid grasp of relevant legislation and grant schemes in the UK. A potent and continuous theme is the notion that woodlands provide a vast diversity of potential products which can be foraged, cultivated and crafted, and it is by taping in to as many of these as possible (and finding viable local markets for their sale) that the imaginative woodlander can sustain their way of life. This book was, for me, refreshingly dry and textbook-like in its style (opposed with the chatty and over personalised semi-autobiographical genre which I feel is overrepresented in contemporary non-fiction – yes yes I’m a grumpy old man), with many useful tables and charts to reference in the future.
Notwithstanding this high praise, I’m left with two big questions regarding the traditional coppice work Ben practices. Firstly, there is a question of how genuinely financially viable this is as a way of life, especially for those without significant upfront capital or income from book sales, TV appearances and the like. We can’t all be a celebrity and nor do we want to be. The idea of returning to a life in the woods is a deeply romantic one for many, but without alternative income streams, coppice work in the 21st centuary may simply be a return to the relentless, backbreaking toil and intermittent shaves with starvation of subsistence land-work, which modern society, for all its flaws, has enabled us in the developed world to escape. It’s fine if coppice work is an endeavour best undertaken alongside other ways of generating income or for other reasons, but it would be good not to gloss over this fact if it is true.
Secondly and more profoundly, I’m curious about the value of woodlands managed as coppice from a purely ecological perspective. Ben cites the Small Woods Association as claiming that many of our woods are undermanaged, a proportion of which are constituted by old coppice woodlands that are overstood (grown beyond the point of optimal harvest). An overstood coppice has 40 years, he tells us before the woods ‘deteriorate’. But how much sense can we make of these ideas from an ecological perspective? The deterioration Ben refers to is from the perspective of the coppice worker who wishes to extract economic value from the woodland. From an ecological angle, an overstood coppice is presumably simply a wood that is transitioning from a traditional but intense form of human management towards a habitat such as high forest, wood pasture or wetland which is managed less or not at all. Whether and why this should necessarily be considered ‘undermanagement’ from this ecological view is unclear to me.
Ben claims that coppice woodland is of great ecological value, with its rotational nature providing a diversity of habitats which are home to many rare species. This is undoubtedly true, especially in comparison with forests managed for commercial timber production such as non-native conifer plantations. But from an ecological perspective, any form of land use incurs the opportunity cost of rewilding that land – this rather than monoculture plantation is the true alternative against which any human activity must be justified. Coppicing may be an ancient practice on the scale of human existence and one which creates conditions that many creatures find amenable, but we are relative latecomers and these species presumably are just as comfortable in other habitats which pre-date humans? I’m not at all intending to argue that coppice woodland cannot meet the challenge of providing ecological value which is greater (or equal but different) to the various rewilded ecosystems which could take its place, but I simply have no idea myself and do not feel that the challenge is met by Ben in this book.
Nor am I suggesting that ecological value is the only legitimate consideration on land use – of course we need food, timber, habitation, recreation and many other things, all of which must be factored into the equation. Nobody argues that we should rewild all our agricultural land, but it is widely accepted that farming incurs an ecological cost which we should strive to minimise while meeting the food requirements of our population. Similarly, timber is a resource which is more sustainable than most alternatives, and so managing land as coppice woodland may be entirely justifiable from an all things considered perspective even if not from a purely ecological perspective. But then so may monoculture plantations and industrial agriculture.
Again, I’m really not arguing that claims regarding the ecological value of coppice are false, but simply that they are insufficiently defended in this book. I’m deeply enamoured by Ben’s woodland life and feel very excited by the notion that traditional coppice work can be an economically viable way of life in the modern day and provide fantastic ecological value at the same time. But it is perhaps because I find this idea so seductive that my scepticism is aroused. More research needed! Great book anyways Mr. Law, keep up the good work.
Notwithstanding this high praise, I’m left with two big questions regarding the traditional coppice work Ben practices. Firstly, there is a question of how genuinely financially viable this is as a way of life, especially for those without significant upfront capital or income from book sales, TV appearances and the like. We can’t all be a celebrity and nor do we want to be. The idea of returning to a life in the woods is a deeply romantic one for many, but without alternative income streams, coppice work in the 21st centuary may simply be a return to the relentless, backbreaking toil and intermittent shaves with starvation of subsistence land-work, which modern society, for all its flaws, has enabled us in the developed world to escape. It’s fine if coppice work is an endeavour best undertaken alongside other ways of generating income or for other reasons, but it would be good not to gloss over this fact if it is true.
Secondly and more profoundly, I’m curious about the value of woodlands managed as coppice from a purely ecological perspective. Ben cites the Small Woods Association as claiming that many of our woods are undermanaged, a proportion of which are constituted by old coppice woodlands that are overstood (grown beyond the point of optimal harvest). An overstood coppice has 40 years, he tells us before the woods ‘deteriorate’. But how much sense can we make of these ideas from an ecological perspective? The deterioration Ben refers to is from the perspective of the coppice worker who wishes to extract economic value from the woodland. From an ecological angle, an overstood coppice is presumably simply a wood that is transitioning from a traditional but intense form of human management towards a habitat such as high forest, wood pasture or wetland which is managed less or not at all. Whether and why this should necessarily be considered ‘undermanagement’ from this ecological view is unclear to me.
Ben claims that coppice woodland is of great ecological value, with its rotational nature providing a diversity of habitats which are home to many rare species. This is undoubtedly true, especially in comparison with forests managed for commercial timber production such as non-native conifer plantations. But from an ecological perspective, any form of land use incurs the opportunity cost of rewilding that land – this rather than monoculture plantation is the true alternative against which any human activity must be justified. Coppicing may be an ancient practice on the scale of human existence and one which creates conditions that many creatures find amenable, but we are relative latecomers and these species presumably are just as comfortable in other habitats which pre-date humans? I’m not at all intending to argue that coppice woodland cannot meet the challenge of providing ecological value which is greater (or equal but different) to the various rewilded ecosystems which could take its place, but I simply have no idea myself and do not feel that the challenge is met by Ben in this book.
Nor am I suggesting that ecological value is the only legitimate consideration on land use – of course we need food, timber, habitation, recreation and many other things, all of which must be factored into the equation. Nobody argues that we should rewild all our agricultural land, but it is widely accepted that farming incurs an ecological cost which we should strive to minimise while meeting the food requirements of our population. Similarly, timber is a resource which is more sustainable than most alternatives, and so managing land as coppice woodland may be entirely justifiable from an all things considered perspective even if not from a purely ecological perspective. But then so may monoculture plantations and industrial agriculture.
Again, I’m really not arguing that claims regarding the ecological value of coppice are false, but simply that they are insufficiently defended in this book. I’m deeply enamoured by Ben’s woodland life and feel very excited by the notion that traditional coppice work can be an economically viable way of life in the modern day and provide fantastic ecological value at the same time. But it is perhaps because I find this idea so seductive that my scepticism is aroused. More research needed! Great book anyways Mr. Law, keep up the good work.
May 28, 2024
A fantastic resource. The information is presented in straightforward text and handy at-a-glance lists, rendering it all the more useful as a reference. On top of this, you have the author's lovely way of conveying how do-able it all can be with the right level of motivation, mission, realism, and stick-to-it-iveness. It is a way of life, and this author loves it -- the sense of accomplishment in building such a life, the motivation of living in and *with* the forest, and earning a real living with an ecologically sustainable approach that doesn't just avoid having a destructive impact on the forest, but rather actually *helps* the health and regrowth of the forest. Not only is this way of life a celebration of living with and within nature, but also offers a fulfilling sense of community among other woodsmen who share similar values, and are a source of guidance and friendship.
The author is the real deal -- "Britain's greatest living woodsman." He walks the walk, and has done for over 20 years. He is internationally recognized as one of the world's foremost experts on living a woodland life. Below, I've lifted the description of the author directly from his profile within the book so that you can see just how impressive his contribution is:
"He has inspired millions with numerous TV appearances, training courses and lectures, and was most notably voted by viewers of Channel 4's Grand Designs programme as having the Best Ever Build with his Woodland House. He has also been on the BBC programmes Countrylife and The Green Team. In America...The World's Greenest Homes, The World's Most Extreme Homes (HGTV) and Nightline (ABC)." He holds an Advanced National Certificate in Agriculture, and offers apprenticeships. He was a founding member of both The Forest Management Foundation and the Forest Stewardship Council, and has published 5 bestselling books.
All of this goes by way of saying that you're in good hands with this excellent, worthwhile book.
The author is the real deal -- "Britain's greatest living woodsman." He walks the walk, and has done for over 20 years. He is internationally recognized as one of the world's foremost experts on living a woodland life. Below, I've lifted the description of the author directly from his profile within the book so that you can see just how impressive his contribution is:
"He has inspired millions with numerous TV appearances, training courses and lectures, and was most notably voted by viewers of Channel 4's Grand Designs programme as having the Best Ever Build with his Woodland House. He has also been on the BBC programmes Countrylife and The Green Team. In America...The World's Greenest Homes, The World's Most Extreme Homes (HGTV) and Nightline (ABC)." He holds an Advanced National Certificate in Agriculture, and offers apprenticeships. He was a founding member of both The Forest Management Foundation and the Forest Stewardship Council, and has published 5 bestselling books.
All of this goes by way of saying that you're in good hands with this excellent, worthwhile book.
September 10, 2023
Skillfully navigating bureaucracy in an ecologic wasteland.
January 13, 2025
This forest is in the UK but many of the ideas are similar to forest living here.
August 16, 2013
We were given this book as a present when we bought a small woodland.
We already had a good understanding of permaculture, and it was interesting to see how Ben Law applies the permaculture framework to his woodland management.
At 100 acres, his woodland is a lot larger than ours, so not everything was relevant to us, not that this detracts from the quality of the information.
As time has gone by, we have moved more down the permaculture-based agroforestry/forest gardening road, rather than the traditional woodland management covered by Ben Law.
However, we still plan on coppicing, green woodworking etc, and so will refer back to this book in the future, without a doubt.
We already had a good understanding of permaculture, and it was interesting to see how Ben Law applies the permaculture framework to his woodland management.
At 100 acres, his woodland is a lot larger than ours, so not everything was relevant to us, not that this detracts from the quality of the information.
As time has gone by, we have moved more down the permaculture-based agroforestry/forest gardening road, rather than the traditional woodland management covered by Ben Law.
However, we still plan on coppicing, green woodworking etc, and so will refer back to this book in the future, without a doubt.
March 6, 2014
I like his designs a lot and what he was to say about the work means a lot and inspires me.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews