About the reserve

This ancient oak woodland was left to us in 1991 by its previous owner who had lived in a cabin in the wood. In 1998 we purchased the wildflower meadow next to it. The rides are covered with stones making access easy. The pond just off the main ride was created by a stray World War II bomb. The wood connects with our Biss Wood nature reserve and Green Lane Nature Park – why not enjoy a walk through them all.

The open part of the wood is coppiced, encouraging woodland flowers to grow. They include Solomon’s seal, stinking Iris and greater butterfly orchid.

In summer look for butterflies: silver-washed fritillary, Duke of Burgundy, purple hairstreak, speckled wood and white-letter hairstreak. Autumn offers striking leaf colour and fungi; and in January and February listen for the hammering of the great spotted woodpecker. The meadow is full of flowers from spring onwards - scarce adder’s-tongue fern, common knapweed and betony. It is light and damp beneath the pylons - ideal for wild angelica and ragged robin.

In the woodland you can find nuthatch and jay. Look out for a treecreeper walking up the side of a tree trunk in search of food. Roe and muntjac deer are hard to spot, but you might see grass snake and slow worm basking in sunshine. The rare Bechstein’s bat makes the wood its home. It roosts in hollow or rotten trees, although it has been known to use bird and bat boxes.