The Gallery
Learning about and practising commoning on the New Forest.
In medieval times a forest meant an area preserved for royal hunting, and not a wooded area as it does today.
The Agisiter ensures welfare standards of the free-roaming animals are maintained.
The ‘architects’ of the New Forest.
The New Forest landscape supports many species of plants, insects, birds and mammals. It should be valued as a reserve for nature.
One of many gatherings where Commoners can exchange news, information and knowledge.
Pannage season is part of the ancient commoning rights and a popular tradition.
Traditional management practices, particularly commoning, have conserved the ecological diversity of the Forest.
Tag Archives: cattle
New Forest: heathland management and controlled burning
Visitors to the northern part of the New Forest recently (Febuary 2015) may have witnessed a technique for managing the heathland that has been practiced for generations, namely controlled burning. The Forestry Commission undertakes this activity now, which aims to … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest flora & fauna
Tagged cattle, commonable stock, commoners, commoning, controlled burning, fire, Forestry Commission, gorse, heathland, holly, New forest, ponies, Verderers
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New Forest: The cow and the cattlegrid
I was in the pub one evening last week (December 2014) and offered a lift home to a long established commoning friend of mine. We drove across the Forest chatting away until, within a couple of hundred yards of their … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest cattle, New Forest Commoner
Tagged cattle, cattle grid, Commoner, commoning, Cow, heifer, herd, New forest
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Commonable animals and road traffic accidents
Recently I was talking to someone who had heard about a particularly nasty hit and run fatality in the New Forest that had involved a pregnant donkey. The details were utterly horrific and the witness who discovered the dead animal … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest Commoner, New Forest pony
Tagged Agister, cattle, Cow, don't feed the animals, donkey, hit and run, killing with kindness, New forest, pig, pony, road traffic accident, sheep, Verderer
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New Forest: lowland heath and commoning
For all its wilderness qualities the New Forest is an area that has actually been managed for over a thousand years. Generations of commoners, and their free-roaming ponies and cattle have maintained the landscape and, through their traditional practices, provided … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest Commoner
Tagged adder, bracken, cattle, commoning, conservation, Dartford warbler, gorse, heath, heather, lowland heathland, New forest, ponies, sand lizard, smooth snake
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New Forest: interdependence of commoners, animals and nature.
Becoming a practising commoner has opened my eyes to a new ways of experiencing the countryside and a traditional pastoral economy. Learning about the interdependence of the free-roaming animals, the commoning system and the flora and fauna of the New … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest Commoner, New Forest pony
Tagged ancient trees, biodiversity, cattle, commoning, Dartford warbler, donkeys, heathland, Honey Buzzard, Mother Nature, New forest, New Forest Cicada, New Forest Commoner, New Forest pony, nightjar, pigs, ponies, SSSI, Wild horses, wilderness, woodcock, woodland
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Animal road casualty reports make grim statistics
The Verderers weekly reports of animal casualties on the Forest roads always make such grim reading. Each entry states the day, date, time, the animal involved – pony, cow, sheep, pig or donkey – and what happen to that animal. … Continue reading
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