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: Commoner
New Forest: racing the cows
Being a commoner is never dull. My commoning friends not only share their adventures with me but also, on occasion, provide me with opportunities to have a few of my own! I was visiting a friend and fellow commoner recently … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest cattle, New Forest Commoner
Tagged Commoner, cows, galloping, New forest, ponies, racing
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New Forest: autumn is here and the drifts are underway
Autumn has arrived. The heathland, woods and lawns wear a pale blanket of mist in the early mornings and the heathland is mantled in purple heather. The blackberries shine like jewels in the hedgerows and great quantities of sloes decorate … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest customs, New Forest pony, New Forest Pony Drift
Tagged Agister, Commoner, drift, galloping, New Forest pony, pound, round-up, traditional, Verderers of the New Forest, working forest
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New Forest: springtime – natures awakes
I am so pleased to see the return of spring. The lighter mornings mean that I can now check on my stock before I go to work. Many commoners keep their ponies on their holdings during the bleaker months and … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest Commoner
Tagged adder, amphibians, bumblebees, celandines, Commoner, cordial, crocuses, daffodils, frogs, gorse, ladybirds, lapwing, lizard, moths, New forest, newts, peacock butterflies, ponies, primroses, red admiral, reptiles, sky lark, snake, spring, springtime, toads, viper
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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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New Forest ponies with moustaches
I was in the pub recently watching the rugby (November 2014). Many of the players in the England squad were sporting moustaches, in support of ‘Movember’, to raise awareness of prostate cancer. As I looked around the room there were … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest pony
Tagged Commoner, facial hair, fuzz-toppers, gelding, gorse, holly, mare, moustache, Movember, New forest, pony-mo, Pony-tache, stallion
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The New Forest and The Great War.
Watching the Remembrance Day service was particularly poignant this year. World War One, which lasted from 28 July 1914 until 11 November 1918, began a hundred years ago. When seeing the expressions on the faces of the men and women … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest Commoner, New Forest pony, The Great War
Tagged artillery, battle, cavalry, Cenotaph, Commoner, First World War, Great War, horses, Lyndhurst, memorial, New forest, pony, Rememberance Day, Salisbury Plain, Verderers, War Office
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New Forest: home to the commoners
The practice of commoning on the New Forest fills me with fascination. Learning about its history is totally absorbing and as I discover more about the events, community, and characters that have maintained the commoning system the more I want … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest Commoner
Tagged Anglo-Saxon Chronicles, colt-hunting, Commoner, Commoners Dwelling Scheme, commoning, Doomesday Book, drifts, New forest, New Forest Commoners Defence Association, New Forest National Park Authority, second homes, self-sufficiency
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The New Forest: the future of commoning
The New Forest is an ancient landscape that has survived into modern times. It is a place of exquisite natural beauty, which is internationally recognised for its importance to wildlife. Because of its distinctive geography it has never been cultivated … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest Commoner
Tagged Commoner, commoning, Middle Ages, New forest, Nova Foresta, Pannage, Parliamentary Commission, pastoral, symbiotic
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New Forest pony: wild or tame but always clever.
The free-roaming ponies of the New Forest are often described as ‘wild’ but it would be more accurate to define them as ‘semi-feral’. The only truly wild horse still in existence is the Przewalski’s horse (Equus caballus przewalskii), a breed … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest pony
Tagged Brumby, Commoner, equine, Equus caballus przewalskii, feral, horses, Mustang, New forest, New Forest pony, predator, prey species, Przewalski's horse, selective breeding, semi-feral, Wild horses
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Autumn: the season of tradition and heritage
Autumn is a time when the traditional rural practices and cultural heritage of the New Forest come alive. The annual drifts, or pony round-ups, that were ordered by Henry VIII in 1540, are in full progress and are still conducted … Continue reading
Posted in New Forest, New Forest Commoner, New Forest pony, New Forest Pony Drift, Pannage season
Tagged acorns, Agisiter, beech mast, Commoner, countryside, drift, heritage, Mast Year, New forest, Pannage, pigs, pony, round-up, Tradition
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