Ever wonder how the countryside would have developed without us? After the last ice age ended 12,000 years ago, it didn’t take long for England to become cloaked in its native broad-leaved trees, such as hazel, oak and beech. Wouldn’t it be interesting to see what the landscape might have looked without human interference?
Essentially, you can. Little capsules of this original woodland do exist here, albeit covering just two per cent of the UK compared with 90 per cent at its peak. These beautiful copses have eluded ploughing and agriculture for centuries, and have developed into independent ecosystems supporting a huge variety of life – from the microbe-rich soil to the 500-plus species of plants, fungi and animals that thrive within and above it.
This in itself is rather special. Younger woods grow in soil that is likely to have been owned at some point, which means the ground will probably have been churned up for agricultural purposes. “The effect of ploughing means a lot of the diversity in the soil is lost,” explains Mike Townsend, Principal Adviser at the Woodland Trust. “This includes, for example, certain types of fungi that contribute to the growth of trees.” Indeed, the relationship between microbes and mushrooms is just one of the fascinating areas of ancient woodland ecosystems that we have yet to fully understand.
What’s more, Britain’s oldest woods are often archaeological treasure troves of the sort that would send Time Team’s Phil Harding and his friends reeling to the nearest pub for a heated debate about trench positioning. Townsend explains: “Because ancient woods haven’t been disturbed, they tend to hold a lot of archaeological features that have been lost in the wider countryside. For instance, a lot of woods in the Wye valley have things like millstones, charcoal pits – places where they made charcoal in the woods as part of the iron smelting industry – and lime kilns.”
And that’s not the only special woodland feature to be found in Wales. It is also home to some very rare habitats that have a humid temperate climate and high levels of rainfall: rainforests. That’s right – in Wales. These lush woodlands are teeming with wildlife and in urgent need of protection.
In its continuing fight to preserve them, the Woodland Trust is currently trying to buy for the nation 100 acres of particularly special Celtic oak rainforest, surrounded by 400 acres of farmland. A Site of Special Scientific Interest, Llennyrch is a 10,000-year-old wood hidden in a deep gorge at the foot of the mountains of Snowdonia, where the Afon Prysor river feeds rock pools and waterfalls. Rare ferns flourish thanks to the even rarer lichen that grows on its rocks, and bryophytes – plants that date back 450 million years – are among the flora found on its tree bark. It is, without a doubt, one of the most important ancient woodlands in the UK – and you can help preserve it.
Get involved
• Help save this strip of rainforest by going to the Woodland Trust’s Llennyrch campaign page and making a donation.
• Add your voice to the Woodland Trust’s petition for the wider protection of ancient woodland.
• Join in with a Woodland Trust activity day in an ancient wood, such as the family bushcraft days in Brede High Woods, East Sussex.
• Find out more about ancient woodlands by arranging a community talk near you with an expert.
