coppicing is a very ancient form of woodland management in Britain. As has been suggested, above, it involves cutting young trees (about 8 year old, usually - does depend a bit on the variety of tree) back to about a foot above ground level and allowing it to re-grow. The new growth takes the form of sefveral thin shoots which, after about five or six years are thick enough to be harveted and the poles used for a variety of purposes. One of the main ones was to make charcoal, which was a major fuel in Britain until the late C18, when the canal system made transpoirt of mined coal so much cheaper that most people could afford it. (By which time, the tree population of Britain had become greatly depleted, from the demands of ship-building and house-building.)
Another use for coppiced wood was for the making of hurdles and baskets. In the southern parts of what is now Cumbria, coppiced oak was used to make large baskets which were so close woven that, without any sort of caulking, they would hold water.
