| Blandford Forest | |
|---|---|
  | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Dorset, Dorset Downs, North Dorset,England |
| OS grid | ST833068 |
| Coordinates | 50°51′40″N2°14′17″W / 50.861°N 2.238°W Coordinates: 50°51′40″N2°14′17″W / 50.861°N 2.238°W |
| Elevation | 147.4 m |
Blandford Forest is a scattered area of woodland centred to the northwest of the town of Blandford Forum in North Dorset, England. [1]
According to the Forestry Commission, Blandford Forest comprises a number of scattered woodlands around the village of Winterborne Stickland, including Whatcombe Wood and France Down. [2] [3]
The Forest has one scheduled archaeological site: the ancient earthwork of Crossdyke on Okeford Hill near Shillingstone. [3]
The Forestry Commission is a non-ministerial government department responsible for the management of publicly owned forests and the regulation of both public and private forestry in England. It was formerly also responsible for Forestry in Wales and Scotland, however on 1 April 2013, Forestry Commission Wales merged with other agencies to become Natural Resources Wales, whilst two new bodies were established in Scotland on 1 April 2019.
Winterborne Houghton is a village and civil parish in north Dorset, England. It is situated in a winterbourne valley on the Dorset Downs, five miles southwest of Blandford Forum. In the 2011 census the parish had 82 households and a population of 183. In 2001 the population was 195.
Winterborne Stickland is a village and civil parish in the county of Dorset in southern England. It lies about four miles west of the town of Blandford Forum. In 2013 the civil parish had an estimated population of 520. In the 2011 census the parish, combined with the smaller neighbouring parishes of Winterborne Clenston to the south and Turnworth to the north, recorded a population of 653.
Winterborne Whitechurch, also Winterborne Whitchurch, is a village and civil parish in central Dorset, England, situated in a winterbourne valley on the A354 road on the Dorset Downs five miles southwest of Blandford Forum. In the 2011 census the civil parish had 354 dwellings, 331 households and a population of 757.
Rockingham Forest is a former royal hunting forest in the county of Northamptonshire, England. It is an area of some 200 sq mi (500 km2) lying between the River Welland and River Nene and the towns of Stamford and Kettering. It has a rich and varied landscape, with farmland, open pasture, pockets of woodland and villages built from local stone.
Whittlewood Forest is a former medieval hunting forest east of Silverstone in Northamptonshire in England. It is managed by the Forestry England. There are tracts of ancient woodland within it and old ditches can be found at the edges of several individual woods. The area has been the subject of extensive academic historical research. An area of 400 hectares in seven different patches has been designated a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), which is about half the size of an average English parish. It is a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade 2.
Savernake Forest stands on a Cretaceous chalk plateau between Marlborough and Great Bedwyn in Wiltshire, England. Its area is approximately 4,500 acres.
Delamere Forest is a large wood in the village of Delamere in Cheshire, England. The woodland, which is managed by Forestry England, covers an area of 972 hectares making it the largest area of woodland in the county. It contains a mixture of deciduous and evergreen trees.
Swinley Forest is a large expanse of Crown Estate woodland managed by Forestry England mainly within the civil parishes of Windlesham in Surrey and Winkfield and Crowthorne in Berkshire, England.
Bedford Purlieus is a 211-hectare (520-acre) ancient woodland in Cambridgeshire, in the United Kingdom. It is a national nature reserve and Site of Special Scientific Interest owned and managed by the Forestry Commission. In Thornhaugh civil parish, 10 km (6.2 mi) south of Stamford and 14 km (8.7 mi) west of Peterborough, the wood is within the Peterborough unitary authority area of Cambridgeshire, and borders Northamptonshire. In Roman times it was an iron smelting centre, during the medieval period it was in the Royal Forest of Rockingham, and later it became part of the estates of the Duke of Bedford. Bedford Purlieus appears to have been continuously wooded at least from Roman times, and probably since the ice receded. The woodland may have the richest range of vascular plants of any English lowland wood. It acquired particular significance in the 1970s as an early subject for the historical approach to ecology and woodland management.
The United Kingdom, being in the British Isles, is ideal for tree growth, thanks to its mild winters, plentiful rainfall, fertile soil and hill-sheltered topography. Growth rates for broadleaved (hardwood) trees exceed those of mainland Europe, while conifer (softwood) growth rates are three times those of Sweden and five times those of Finland. In the absence of people, much of Great Britain would be covered with mature oaks, except for Scotland. Although conditions for forestry are good, trees do face damage threats arising from fungi, parasites and pests. The development of afforestation and the production and supply of timber in Wales come under Natural Resources Wales, as set out in the Forestry Act 1967.
Scotland is ideal for tree growth, thanks to its mild winters, plentiful rainfall, fertile soil and hill-sheltered topography. As of 2019 about 18.5% of the country was wooded. Although this figure is well below the European Union (EU) average of 43%, it represents a significant increase compared to the figure of 100 years previously: in 1919 it was estimated that only 5% of the country's total land area was covered in forest. The Scottish Government's Draft Climate Change Plan has set an aim of increasing coverage to 21% of Scotland by 2032, with the rate of afforestation rising to 15,000 hectares per year by 2024.
Winterborne Clenston is a small village and civil parish in Dorset, England, around 3+1⁄2 miles southwest of Blandford Forum. In 2013 the civil parish had an estimated population of 40.
Dymock Woods is a 53-hectare (130-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1990. The site is listed in the 'Forest of Dean Local Plan Review' as a Key Wildlife Site (KWS).
Shorn Cliff And Caswell Woods is a 69.2-hectare (171-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, notified in 1986. The site is listed in the 'Forest of Dean Local Plan Review' as a Key Wildlife Site (KWS).
Faskally Forest, also known as Faskally Woods, is a wooded area in the historic county of Perthshire, Scotland. It is among the mixed woodlands of Perthshire, and is well known for its radiant colours during the autumn. It is one of the early forest lands of Perthshire Big Tree County. Originally a "model woodland" developed in the 19th century with a resort owned by Archibald Edward Butter. In 1953, Faskally was acquired by the Forestry Commission of Scotland to set up a school for training young foresters.
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