Trees and Shrubs in Old Sulehay Forest and Stonepit Quarry.

Preliminary notes.

Nick Owens Sept. 2001

Oak: Quercus robor

A dominant species in the forest. Trees with single trunks appear to be up to about 100-150 years old, but there are many multiple trunks growing from stumps that must be several hundred years old. Trees all seem healthy. One or two newly germinated seedlings found, but they probably do not last. No knopper galls seen. There is at least one seedling germinating among the brambles by the main ride. Like most trees it probably can not regenerate unless protected by scrub and brambles from deer and rabbit grazing.

Ash: Fraxinus excelsior

A very common species in the wood, tending to grow in groups, perhaps on the damper ground. Seedlings grow readily, and there is a good range of ages. There are some very old coppiced stumps, for example near the badger setts.

Sycamore: Acer pseudoplatanus

A colony grows near the badger setts on the south side of the wood, to the east of the green lane. Many of these make up the woodland boundary. They are regenerating rapidly back into the wood. There is a solitary large specimen south of the main ride near the lime coppice. It does not seem to have any offspring so far. There is at least one tree in the quarry.

Field maple: Acer campestre

A very common species distributed throughout the wood. There are many ancient coppiced specimens with multiple trunks. There is some regeneration, including in the quarry. In many parts of the wood in August/September there were trees showing die-back, with yellowing crowns and a good number of branches completely brown. This is caused by squirrel damage to bark.

Wild service: Sorbus torminalis

There is a solitary specimen by the west end of the main ride at the exit of the wood. There are a further six trees – 3 large and 3 small – on the north side by the edge of the quarry face just east of the pheasant pen. One of the trees has barbed wire embedded in it. What should the treatment be, if any? Some are sending up suckers, but they are grazed off by animals.

Rowan: Sorbus aucuparia

A single full grown specimen, seemingly self-sown, near the wild service.

Hazel: Corylus avellana

This is the commonest shrub in the forest. It seems to have been coppiced in the past. It is host to toothwort, which occurs between the main entrance and the badger sett.

Wych elm: Ulmus glabra

Although Gent and Wilson say this often originates as a planted tree, it looks as though the specimens in the forest are self seeded. There are at least four single-trunked specimens, not arising as suckers, scattered through the forest. They are all about 20-30 years old. It seems possible that they all germinated from seed in the same year – perhaps the hot summer of 1976. Mabey in Flora Brittannica says that Wych elm does sometimes germinate from seed, unlike the other elms which need hotter climates to do so. There is an old elm trunk rotting on the ground near the wild service at the north end of the N/S ride.

Silver birch: Betula pendula

This species is common on the sandier parts of the wood, often where there is bracken. It quickly colonises open spaces and is rapidly spreading in the quarry. There are also some mature specimens, perhaps 100 years old, and many fallen, rotting trunks. The dying trunks are often used for nesting by woodpeckers.

Beech: Fagus sylvatica

There are several mature beech trees near the western end of the wood. They appear to have been planted, perhaps 150 years ago. There is some damage to the bark at the base of most of the trees, caused either by deer or rabbits. Wire netting protection has been placed around some of them by the previous owners. This has been left, though eased away from the bark where necessary by Alan Malt and myself. The trees nevertheless look healthy. Their spreading branches suggest that they were planted as parkland trees with little competition, but have since been surrounded. The do not appear to be regenerating.

Small-leaved lime: Tilia cordata

There is a fair amount of this indicator of ancient woodland in the western part of the wood, where the soil is sandy. There are some standard trees of about 100-150 years old, which are fine specimens, though these may possibly be hybrids. Some of them (in the north-west corner of the wood) appear to have been planted in lines along parallel banks as if they were the boundary to an ancient riding, possibly leading to Old Sulehay Lodge. Some of these have been coppiced recently, perhaps in the last war. In addition there are 5 or 6 ancient lime coppice stools to the south of the main ride which are certainly Tilia cordata. The stools are up to 15 feet in diameter with a circle of trunks around a hollow centre, and must be very old. Mabey says that this species does not regenerate from seed since the cooling of the climate about 3000 years ago. The trees are unlikely to be as old as this, though they may be several hundred years old. How did they get started? Were they planted or did they germinate in an exceptionally warm period some time in the past [see wych elm]. The trees were covered in fruits in September 2001. According to Keith Kirby (pers. comm.2001) lime seedlings have developed in Bedford Purlieus in each of the last five years, but have been destroyed by grazing.

Common lime: T.platyphyllos x T. Cordata

The two trees near the horse chestnuts at the ‘cross-roads’ near the centre of the wood are probably the hybrid. They were presumably planted at the same time as the chestnuts. One of the limes fell down in 1999, but is regrowing from the stump.

Horse chestnut: Aesculus hippocastanum

There is a grove of planted trees at the ‘cross-roads’ as mentioned above. There are three white flowered and one pink flowered. There are at least two seedlings nearby, and a solitary young tree in the north-west corner of the wood, possibly planted when there were people in the wood in the last war.

Sweet chestnut: Castanea sativa

There are two or three very old coppiced stools near the junction of the main ride with the path to the badger setts. There is a single mature tree nearby, developed from a coppice stool which has since largely rotted away. There is also at least one very large coppice stool in the north west corner, near the lime ‘avenue’.

Hawthorn: Crataegus monogyna

Common along the woodland boundary and also in the interior – does not seem to be replaced by midland hawthorn unlike Short Wood. Some specimens are very large. There is some storm damage to the trees on the south side of the wood, near the working quarry.

Blackthorn: Prunus spinosa

Present, usually where the canopy is broken, and spreading around the entrance gate by the Yarwell-Wansford road.

Crab apple: Malus sylvestris

Many specimens scattered in the wood, some very large. There is one in the old pheasant pen. This species was probably encouraged by foresters in past centuries as it provides food for foraging pigs.

Apple: Malus domestica

Described as uncommon by Gent and Wilson. There is a specimen with green apples near the wild service on the main ride, and another near the style into the quarry by the road with reddish fruit. These have presumably arisen from discarded apple cores.

Goat willow: Salix caprea

Quite common in the wood, especially along rides.

Dog-rose: Rosa canina

Very common along the rides and in the quarry.

Field rose: Rosa arvensis

Present in the quarry.

Spindle: Euonymus europaeus

Common along the rides. A fine crop of fruits in 2001, which are eaten by blackbirds and by bullfinches.

Dogwood: Cornus sanguinea

Common along the rides.

Elder: Sambucus nigra

Common along the rides and in the quarry. Quite a lot is regenerating in the coppiced scallops on the E/W ride.

Wayfaring tree: Viburnum lantana

At least one specimen beside the main ride, and one in the north east corner of the quarry.

Blackberry: Rubus sp.

Abundant especially in the quarry

Dewberry: Rubus caesius

Present on N/S ride.

Gooseberry: Ribes uva-crispa

Present at woodland/quarry boundary

Spurge laurel: Daphne laureola

Common at western edge of wood and along western hedgerow of the quarry, with a large specimen south east of the chestnut cross-roads.

Old man’s beard: Clematis vitalba

Abundant along the rides, woodland edge, hedgerows and dominant in the quarry. Regenerates on stony ground but often remains small owing to drought and/or grazing.

Honeysuckle: Lonicera periclymenum

Present but not common. Perhaps suffers competition from Clematis. White admiral has been recorded, for which this is the food plant [once by Norman Low in 2000 and twice in 2001 by Janet Probyn, and in 2002 by Ron Follows].

Butterfly bush: Buddleja davidii

Growing on steep bank of pit beside main ride.

Ivy: Hedera helix

Scarce, though present within the forest. Present on some boundary trees and hedges. Ivy is not common in ancient woodland.

Privet: Ligustrum vulgare

Fairly common around quarry and along main east-west ride in forest.

Buckthorn: Rhamnus catharticus

At least one large plant in the hedge along the north side of the quarry, adjacent to sheep pasture.

Not yet found, but could be present:-

Aspen

Holly

Guelder rose

Sessile oak

Midland hawthorn

Nick Owens

2001 updated Nov. 2002