Land management and conservation

Our estate staff sensitively manage the natural environment in partnership with our tenants, to ensure it is both thriving and sustainable.

At all times we consult and work closely with the appropriate advisory organisations to support the conservation of land, wildlife and natural habitats, as well as the infrastructure on the Estate.

The management of the land at Eaton reflects its long term agricultural use. Rich soils make it suitable for growing arable crops and grazing dairy cattle as well as producing quality hardwood timber from native woodland.

The principal feature of landscape is the River Dee which bisects the estate. Its floodplains and catchment provide extensive wetland habitats which together with grassland, hedgerows, ponds, and woodland provide an attractive landscape rich in wildlife. Seven scheduled ancient monuments and two Sites of Special Scientific interest are also managed.

The story of our seasoned hardwood logs

Read more about the ongoing care and management of estate woodland

The story of our seasoned hardwood logs

The Eaton Estate has approximately 425 hectares of woodlands with 60 named woods which are managed sustainably by the forestry team.

The woodlands are predominantly populated by broad leaved trees which produce hard woods that are mostly used in construction, furniture and for fuel.

Though in some cases centuries old, all the estate’s woodlands have been planted and managed to create what can be seen today.

Our foresters are responsible for the ongoing care and management of this woodland and its trees, including the production of high quality timber, woodchip and firewood logs which are available to buy direct from the estate.

All our firewood is produced from sustainably managed woodland on the Eaton Estate and is carbon neutral with the new tree growth absorbing the CO2 from the atmosphere equivalent to that used when burning the fuel.

Wood remains a good source of both affordable and renewable fuel and it is believed – in its various forms – to account for about half of Europe’s renewable-energy. Our woodchip Biomass fuel and logs provide energy and heat to homes and business across the region.

Our seasoned hardwood logs are available to purchase and can be delivered to your driveway in Chester, across the Eaton Estate, as well as villages such as Farndon, Holt, and Rossett and as far as Tarporley, Tattenhall and Tarvin. For more information please click here.

Felling and extraction

The thinning of woodland areas across the estate is carried out over many decades to promote growth for younger trees, select the final crop to be harvested as well as providing habitats for other plants and animals.

Expert foresters fell trees using chainsaws and then strip the trunk of branches. The trunks are cut in to four meter sections and then removed from the woodland using specialist machinery.

Storage

Every felled tree is stored for about two years to ensure it is dried out. This is an extremely important part of the process as it ensures the wood is stronger, as well as easier and safer to work with.

The trees are stacked across the estate and left to dry in the open air, a system known as air seasoning. Because the woodland is managed throughout the year there is always wood ready to be processed into timber and logs.

Production

When a stack is dried, the wood is transported to the estate’s log shed. Here, skilled foresters use specialist machinery which both cuts the wood to length and splits it into two ready for delivery or to be bagged and taken to the Grosvenor Garden Centre.

Replanting the trees

The forestry team undertake an annual program of replanting as part of a sustainable system to manage the woodland, starting the process all over again. We set ourselves very high standards in the care of the environment and our woodland is managed to provide a diverse habitat that is rich in wildlife.