Woodland covers some 1,000 hectares of the Ashdown Forest, that is roughly 40% of its area. Much of the woodland is relatively young. However, the forest’s capacity for regeneration / renewal is being damaged by overgrazing.  Local deer populations have grown and now represent a problem. Deer browse / graze on vegetation, shoots, flower buds and foliage are stripped off plants.  Young saplings are damaged and bark is eaten, especially when food is scarce.  Consequently, tree and shrub regeneration is limited.  Other species are affected by the feeding of the deer, either through loss of niches or food.  Among those at risk are small mammals and certain butterfly species. [caption id="attachment_34368" align="aligncenter" width="650"] deer damage[/caption] Damage is found in woodlands in many parts of the country, as deer populations have increased in recent times. In the 1970s, the deer population was estimated to be around 450,000 as compared to today’s estimates of over 2 million.  The National Forest Inventory highlighted that "40 percent of British forests have ‘unfavourable’ levels herbivore damage, which limits the survival of young trees and threatens biodiversity".  Apart from deer damage, there is damage by the grey squirrel populations. Deer browsing can : Prevent natural regeneration Affect biodiversity Affect woodland resilience Reduce food availability to the herd which can lead to starvation / loss of condition Deer are also hosts to ticks.  The ticks may be infected with Borrelia burgdorferi  bacteria and transmit them to humans, resulting in Lyme disease. Deer  also contribute to collisions with motor vehicles; more than 450 deer were hit by vehicles on Hampshire roads last year .  In Scotland,  government agency figures indicate that deer vehicle collisions  [DVCs] have almost doubled between 2008 and 2020.   Sadly, people are injured or killed in DVCs, and the repair cost to vehicles runs into millions. The solution to the ‘problem’ is not clear cut. Culling [the selective killing of animals] to control deer populations is one way in which numbers can be reduced, and the damage to woodland mitigated.  However, this approach has been met with opposition by many, including animal rights organisations.  There is the argument that whilst a reduction in deer numbers might fix some problems in the short term, the subsequent increase in plant growth and food availability might lead to increased breeding by the remaining deer and numbers would then increase again.  Also, unsuccessful or inaccurate shooting leads to animal suffering, mutilation and / or a lingering death.   Some might advocate rewilding and the introduction of apex predators (such as the wolf, lynx, wild cats*) as a means of reducing numbers but that might raise other problems! Deer have been 'part and parcel' of woodlands since mediaeval times, when the forests were used for hunting. In the Ashdown Forest, the number of red deer declined during the C17th,  and poaching was a factor in their decline. Fallow deer numbers also declined. [Fallow deer were introduced to England by the Normans around 1100 AD.]  The deer population roaming the forest has increased significantly in the recent decades, and now there are the relatively recently introduced species, muntjac and sika deer.   There are six species of deer in UK woodlands – the two native species, the red deer and roe deer and fallow, muntjac, sika and chinese water deer make up the four non-native species. The problem of over grazing is not unique to the Ashdown forest. For example, deer numbers in Scotland have doubled in recent years to almost a million since 1990.   Finding sustainable (and humane) solutions to the large numbers of deer is difficult. * Wildcats were once widespread in Britain, but by the end of the 18th century, they were to be found only in the northern regions. [caption id="attachment_34415" align="aligncenter" width="700"] Remnants of birch woodland near Loch Muick are subject to browsing by red deer (especially in the winter), so temporary fences have been put in place to allow for regeneration.[/caption]

At present, our forests and many across much of Europe have a medley of different species, and this has been the case for many hundreds of years.  They have survived minor fluctuations in climate and weather.  However, now climate and weather are changing in significant ways.  There are more extreme weather events, ranging from unprecedented rainfall to drought and periods of very high temperatures.  Winters seem to be be warmer and wetter, summers hotter and drier. Consequently, there is concern that many tree species being planted today will not be able to survive in the conditions that they are likely to experience in 50 or a 100 years time.  Species like the European Beech (Fagus sylvatica) are likely to struggle (like many did in the heat wave of 1976).  The root system of the beech is shallow, and though it has large roots spreading out in many directions, it cannot access water that may be present at deeper levels in the soil.   Though it is not known how native trees might adapt or be able to respond to a changing climate, it is possible that the number of tree species per km2 able to survive through to the next century may well fall by a third to a half in a warmer climate (depending on how quickly the warming occurs). Examination of some 60 plus European trees species at University of Vienna by Johannes Wessely et al suggested that the English or Pedunculate Oak (Quercus robur) may be a species that could cope with changing climatic conditions. It seems that native UK Oaks are genetically diverse, and this gives rise to variation and the potential to adapt to changing conditions.  Oak is wind pollinated and its light pollen can be dispersed over long distances, which promotes outbreeding and genetic diversity. Whilst the oak has always been valuable as a species for :- Timber production : it is used in furniture making and in the past thousands of oaks were used in the building of ships such as the Mary Rose. Carbon sequestration / storage - it is long lived and has a large above ground biomass Biodiversity : it provides a ‘home’ for many species of animals, plants and fungi. It offers food and shelter for many invertebrate species, numerous insects and spiders); its leaves often show the ‘scars’ of their feeding activities. Its bark is an ideal substrate for many lichen and bryophyte species (epiphytes). The roots of the trees establish mycorrhizal associations with various fungi. Now, the Oak may prove to be valuable in a warmer world as a species for timber production and reforestation projects.  The Oak’s ability to support other plant, animal and fungal species would also be important in terms of biodiversity and resilience..   Forests with a smaller number of tree species are thought to be less resilient to climate change and less biodiverse.   [caption id="attachment_41217" align="aligncenter" width="675"] A solitary oak[/caption]

I recently attended the National Allotment Society AGM, where the keynote speaker was Professor David Goulson.  His main academic studies focus on the threats to bees, bumblebees and other insects. He is based at Sussex University.  Back in 2006, he founded the Bumblebee Conservation Trust; a charity which has grown to some 12,000 members.  In his talk at the meeting, he made the following points : He loves allotments because they capture carbon and are rich in biodiversity.  They produce a lot of food.  Typically producing some 10 tonnes / hectare whereas farming productivity is about 3 tonnes per hectare.  The record on a 1m2 in an allotment is 10 kg, which is the equivalent of 100 tonnes / hectare.  Allotments not only produce good food for healthy eating, but people get good exercise through their gardening activities.  A study shows the ‘over-60s’ with allotments have longer life expectancies [controlling for other variables]. [caption id="attachment_40124" align="aligncenter" width="675"] A bee at risk of extinction.[/caption] There are over 300,000 allotment plots in the UK and some 90,000 people on waiting lists.  More allotments could help counter poor health and cut NHS costs. We should turn our cities, towns and villages into a network of nature reserves - essentially a form of urban rewilding. Gardens are a vital part of this, as there are some 400,000 hectares of them in Britain.   Prof Goulson is really keen on less mowing, more ponds and no pesticides. Interestingly, France banned pesticide use in public and urban areas, such as parks, back in 2014 - it is an example that we should follow. Even pet flea treatment is damaging to insect life.  The strength of the doses used means that the chemicals can pass into the environment - to grass, rivers, canals and pools.  Sadly, now 8% of gardens have some plastic lawns, and plastic hedges (and Wisteria !).  Plastic makes him despair.Plant diversity in pavements should be celebrated. Wild flowers / weeds are sources of pollen & nectar for pollinators.  Verges should be nature reserves.  A Scottish "On the Verge" group stopped councils mowing 8x a year and planted a seed mix to transform verges in their area.  Councils should mow less.  Some people may object, so people should strengthen their Council’s hands by writing to them and praising them for no-mow-May-type efforts.  The Buzz Club - has been set up, this is a citizen science project to see what works best for insects. There are lots of short films on his youtube channel . Bees and other pollinators need help.  He suggested lots of ways to help them, for example,  drilling holes in logs for bug hotels.  You can follow Prof Goulson on Twitter or Facebook. [caption id="attachment_40132" align="aligncenter" width="675"] Bumblebees 'enjoing' a small clump of poppies[/caption] [caption id="attachment_40129" align="aligncenter" width="428"] urban herbicide use[/caption]  

Some years back, the Woodlands blog posted various articles about hedgerows,  noting the loss of many - due to the increased mechanisation of farming in the mid C20th.  Now, there is greater recognition of the importance of hedgerows, and there are initiatives to promote the maintenance and expansion of hedgerows. But what is a hedgerow? Natural England offers a definition as follows : A hedgerow is defined as any boundary line of trees or shrubs over 20m long and less than 5m wide, and where any gaps between the trees or shrub species are less that 20m wide (Bickmore, 2002). Any bank, wall, ditch or tree within 2m of the centre of the hedgerow is considered to be part of the hedgerow habitat, as is the herbaceous vegetation within 2m of the centre of the hedgerow.  This differs from the definition in the  Biodiversity Action Plan, which included references to ancient hedges / species-rich hedges.  The definition now includes all hedgerows consisting of at least one native woody species of tree or shrub (mainly), but it does exclude bramble and honeysuckle as ‘woody species’.  According to one source, there are some 550,000km of hedgerow in England, with over 400,000 km being actively managed.  Hedgerows are an important semi-natural habitat in what is otherwise a managed agricultural landscape. They are found across the country but there are more in lowland regions. Hedgerows in the south east are associated with large fields and fewer trees, the proportion of trees in hedgerows increases as one goes north and west.   The nature of hedgerows varies across the country but all are important as : They provide a habitat, shelter (micro-climate provision) and resources for many different species (from plants to insects, birds and mammals). Hedgerows are particularly important as nesting sites for birds. They support animals that have key roles within the broader ecosystem, for example pollinators and predators of pests. They offer an important source of nectar that helps support wild bees - adjacent farmland can be a poor source of nectar Hedgerows are known to support threatened (red listed) species Hedgerows capture and store carbon (above and below ground) Hedgerows offer ecosystem services eg. mitigation of water flux and availability, landscape connectivity, soil conservation / stabilisation. A number of studies indicate that increasing the number of hedgerows would help with landscape connectivity (for example, for hedgehogs) and that planting of blackthorn and hawthorn in association with later flowering species would help support a number of wild bee species.  Expanding the number of hedgerows could have some negative effects as they might offer a home to invasive species and / or pathogens; but one study has indicated that ash trees in hedgerows suffer less impact from ash dieback than trees in forests.  To date there does not appear to be any detailed research on whether increasing hedgerow coverage would have any impact on tree disease / pathogen spread. Hedgerows, like woodlands themselves, face a number of challenges due to climate change.  Warmer winters may mean that the ‘winter chill’ requirements of some shrubs / trees will not be met; this may mean flowers and fruits fail to form properly which in turn means less food for birds, small mammals etc.  Drier summers may stress some species, trees like Beech are susceptible to drought.  Extreme weather events (like Storm Arwen) can inflict damage on hedgerow trees.  If a hedgerow is next to farmland, then it may experience drift from pesticide and / or herbicide spraying  nutrient enrichment (eutrophication) due to the use of fertilisers. Hedgerows with a diverse structure, with plants, shrubs and trees of varying ages and heights provide the widest range of niches / microhabitats for wildlife.  The inclusion of dead / decaying wood offers opportunities for various fungi, saproxylic beetles, woodlice etc.  Some hedgerows are managed / reduced with a mechanical flail (see above !!!). If this is done annually, it can result in a loss of biodiversity. Trimming should be done on a 2 or 3 year cycle; and some sections of the hedge might be left for longer " see (https://www.hedgelink.org.uk/cms/cms_content/files/76_ne_hedgecutting.pdf).  Thousands of tree and hedgerow plants are being planted to create a flood defence project at Castlehill, East Hull.   The plan is to create some seven hectares of woodland and over five kilometres of new hedgerow, as part of a flood defence project (to store floodwater east of the city).  Trees such as field maple, downy birch, English oak, and black alder are being planted along with species of willow, dog rose, guelder rose and blackthorn and hawthorn to create hedgerows and scrubland.  Other species will be allowed to naturally develop in the area and the habitat is expected to reach ‘maturity in some fifteen to twenty years. There is a citizen science project that involves surveying hedgerows.  It is organised by the People’s Trust for Endangered Species [PTES].  The Great British Hedgerow Survey guidelines can be found here : https://hedgerowsurvey.ptes.org/survey-guidelines Some times hedges offer a home to other things         

Poplars belong to the same family as the willows. Like willows, they have a 'preference' for wet soil. There are a number of poplar species – white, grey and black poplar and the western balsam poplar,   A poplar that is common is the Lombardy Poplar, it is a variant of the Black Poplar and probably the most recognizable poplar,  as its branches grow almost parallel to the main stem.   It is a tall, thin tree. The leaves of black poplar (Populus nigra) are arranged along the stems in an alternate fashion. The leaf has a long, slender leaf stalk – which is slightly flattened. The leaf is sometimes described as ‘triangular’ or ‘diamond shaped’. When first formed, the leaves may have a bronze tinge and the young shoots, leaves and stalks have fine, tiny hairs.   The upper leaf surface is a dark green, whereas the lower surface is not such a deep green. In Autumn, the leaves may turn a vibrant 'banana' yellow. The bark of the Black Poplar is grey / brown and deeply fissured with age. The tree may grow to a height of 100 feet, but is usually smaller than this.  The species is dioecious, that is, there are separate male and female trees. In some parts of the country, like Cheshire, the number of Black Poplars is falling, due to changes in land management, a reduced need for particular timbers and an ageing population of trees.  The natural regeneration of black poplars is limited because : male and female trees need to be near each other the fertilised seeds are only viable for a short period  and the seeds need to fall on damp ground   Added to this, there is the risk of hybridisation with other forms of Poplar. So, The Canal and River Trust in conjunction with Chester Zoo have initiated a program to plant black poplar trees in Cheshire’s Weaver Valley.  They have taken cuttings from native Cheshire trees and raised over 1,000 new trees, which have been planted in sites across Cheshire since 1995. For example, male and female trees have been planted by the River Weaver (Hartford) to encourage future natural propagation. Such black poplars can help promote biodiversity, providing homes for moths, bees, birds and butterflies.   Should you have a portion of woodland that has damp soil, and are considering planting some black poplar, there is company that seems to specialise in Poplars : http://www.poplartree.co.uk/poplartree/.  It lists some of the uses / benefits of poplars.  

Woodlands.co.uk was chosen as the sustainability sponsor for the February 2023 conference, State of Open 2023.  Mostly held for those working in computing and data, this event was held at the QE2 centre in Westminster, with several hundred individuals who networked and learnt more about open source, open data and open standards.  The highlight was the speech by Jimmy Wales, founder of Wikipedia, explaining that Wiki isn't just about free and open information but about structure: their whole model is unusually open. It's truly democratic amongst wikipedians and is the antithesis of top-down models which dominate most of the world's organisations. As sponsors, woodlands.co.uk committed to plant at least one tree for every conference delegate as a carbon-offsetting measure and to encourage biodiversity. It turns out that at this conference relatively little extra carbon was produced for various reasons - the QE2 conference centre itself has strong environmental policies and the delegates were mostly either UK-based or were travelling to Europe anyway for a related conference.  Nethertheless many of them took away free eco-merchandise from the Woodlands stand, including seeds for planting and wooden pens.  Lots of the conference attendees were also interested in buying land for tree-planting so that their company would be offsetting its own carbon footprint and the staff would have a nearby place to go and enjoy. Sustainability sponsors can occasionally be accused of offering 'greenwash" but in this case there was no risk of that because the OpenUK movement is already so committed to sustainability and to using software to reduce carbon emissions.  And in this case, too, the sponsor was offering practical measures such as the planting of defined numbers of trees in the UK (in Kent) rather than a theoretical payment to a nebulous foreign project.  Conference participants were offered the chance to take away seeds to plant their own oak, cherry, lime, chestnut or sycamore trees. The role of sustainability sponsors at conferences varies but can involve financial support or the promotion of sustainability initiatives.  Some eco sponsors also offer energy audits, sustainability assessments or carbon footprint analysis.  According to the AI chatbot, ChatGPT, "Overall, sustainability sponsors play a critical role in supporting the transition to a more sustainable future by providing resources, expertise, and advocacy to organisations working on sustainability issues."  

When you look across cultivated fields you are usually surveying an unrelenting monoculture  -of earth or wheat or grass. Lots of pesticides and fertilizers are used and there are regular assaults by bladed machines.  It's bleak for wildlife, whether plants or animals.  But nature is resourceful and clings on where it can.  And within intensive agricultural areas there is a pattern to the small oases of diversity. There is more diversity where an obstacle stops the machines in their track  Sometimes that's a linear feature like a river or a hedge or maybe just a fence, but often it's just a sticky-up object. A tree, a pylon, a pole, or even a wind-turbine.   At the base of objects sticking up in fields you often find a clump of plants, sometimes flowers, and shelter for small mammals and birds.  Taking the train through northern France recently, I realised how extremely industrialised their countryside has become and it's the same in most of Lincolnshire.  Hedges have been removed, single trees are rare and every effort is directed to increasing wheat / crop production.  Diversity is not just discouraged but it is seen as the enemy - a small copse or hedge can harbour swarms of crop-eaters so these have usually been grubbed out (as have many ponds (see the woodlands blog on ghost ponds in Norfolk).  Whatever the spin and rhetoric, the large scale farmer is at odds with biodiversity. The soil is a highly lucrative resource where farmers want to maximise their returns.  Increasingly, they use modern technology with tractors guided by SatNav, planting twice a year, with harvesting dictated by accurate weather forecasts and sophisticated seedlings being protected and fed by brutally efficient pesticides and fertilisers.  Lip service is often paid to the farmers' role in looking after the countryside but in reality most of them are businessmen and businesswoman wanting to optimise returns.  Farming businesses' borrowings and financial objectives don't allow them to spend too long worrying about biodiversity or the "hundred harvests" concern - that, when treated badly, the soil will be mostly gone (e.g fenland blows) or made unusable within 50 or 100 years. Refuge is an important concept in ecology: the idea that an organism gets protection from predation by hiding in inaccessible areas. Coral reefs are an example of habitats where animals can take refuge, and rainforests contain numerous physical refuges. [The concept of refuges or refugia has developed in recent years].   In the case of the arable fields of Britain,  it seems as if it is mainly the "sticky-up things" and linear features  (hedgerows etc.) which provide refuge, but not just from animal predation but from humans and their machinery.  Nature is reacting to humans as if they are the predators. There are thousands of objects in the countryside which act as refuges - it's a benign and unintended consequence of landscape clutter.  For example signposts, pillar boxes, mobile phone masts, abandoned fence posts, and even discarded farm equipment.  These objects can also offer a structure for plants to climb up in their quest for sunlight and they can provide shelter from wind, but mostly they offer protection against the farmer and the machines.  Unfortunately, the natural human instinct is usually to tidy up everything in sight, which often works to the detriment of biodiversity.  It would be better to protect vegetation and stop mammals from being mashed up by mowers / machinery, and it is often the residual sticky-up features that protect these small refuges.  Perhaps we need less rural de-cluttering of the British landscape, and more ‘mini refuges’.  

In 1820, John Keats famous poem “To Autumn’ was published.  Its opening line often serves to describe autumn as ‘The season of mists and mellow fruitfulness’.  Indeed, Autumn has arrived here.  Woodlands have been transformed into a 'tableau' of red, yellows, and oranges as the leaves are shed and the woodland floor has become a veritable fungal jungle, (as Jasper has described).  Hawthorn and other bushes are laden with berries, conkers and acorns are generously strewn across woodland floors, squirrels are eating hazelnuts (and hiding them as a winter food store).  But this cornucopia of fruits and seeds may be in response to the long, hot and very dry summer we have experienced.  Trees and shrubs have been stressed by the heat and drought. Some have responded by mobilising their reserves / efforts into producing more fruits and seeds, to ensure that they pass on their genes to the next generation.   Different trees are responding in other ways. Some are ‘holding on’ to their leaves for longer, whilst others (like some birches and rowans) have already shed theirs - in order to limit the damage from wilting and water loss during the intense heat and drought of summer.  [caption id="attachment_39130" align="aligncenter" width="675"] Autumnal colour[/caption] Blackberries appeared early this Summer and few are to be seen this Autumn, some animals (like the dormouse) will search in vain. [caption id="attachment_39026" align="aligncenter" width="675"] Black Bryony berries (photo by Art Symons)[/caption] Will this Autumn be long and mild? It may extend into the traditional winter months. There is also the threat of extreme weather events (like Storm Arwen that brought severe winds across the UK last November).  Whilst we might welcome mild weather (with the high price of gas and electricity), it could be mean an increase in bacterial and fungal infections, not only of plants but also affecting overwintering insects - tucked up in cocoons and pupal cases. Prolonged cold periods, coupled with frosts limit the spread of such infections.  The cold of winter is also the traditional signal for animals like hedgehogs to hibernate.  If they are still active in winter when food is scarce, then they will lose condition and possibly starve to death.  Milder weather in Autumn and Winter also affects the migratory behaviour of birds, some birds may choose to overwinter here.  Some seeds need to experience cold temperatures before they will germinate in the following Spring. Climate change and severe weather events are here to stay until there is a coordinated and concerted effort to reduce greenhouse emissions on a global scale.  On a local scale, our gardens (which represent some 400,000 hectares of land) can make a contribution by encouraging wildlife / pollinators and promoting biodiversity.  Gardens can also help to some extent with extreme rainfall.  During heavy rain, water runs off hard surfaces and into the drains, these may also deal with sewage.  When the drains are overwhelmed by storm water, sewage is discharged into our rivers (and the sea).   Gardens can help by  reducing hard landscaping, so that rain can soak into the soil instead of running off into the drains making use of water butts.  They capture water, so it does not enter the drainage system.  It is also there to use when the garden needs water (and there is a hose pipe ban) mulching the soil with a layer of plant material. It is an effective method of conserving water in the soil and it reduces surface runoff, increasing the infiltration / penetration of water into the soil.  It helps keep the soil moist in times of drought, and helps reduce run off during heavy rainfall.  Particularly important when planting young trees / shrubs. [caption id="attachment_38957" align="aligncenter" width="675"] a light mulch (in Art's garden)[/caption]