Benington High Wood

Also within

Hertfordshire County

Condition (Natural England)

Habitats

Ancient woodland, Coppiced woodland

Geology & landscape

Rock Type: Chalk, Glacial Till

Landscape processes: Glacial

Description

Area, 20.7 ha. 51.1 ac. Description Benington High Wood is an ancient woodland and one of the best remaining examples in the county of the pedunculate oak hornbeam woodland of the ash maple variant, which is restricted nationally to south and east England. The wood has a good structure, with areas of both high forest and coppice with standards, interspersed with woodland clearings and broad rides where the species richness of the ground flora is increased. The dominant tree species are pedunculate oak Quercus robur standards and hornbeam Carpinus betulus occurring mainly as overgrown coppice and dominating the well developed shrub layer. Shrub species include field maple Acer campestre, hazel Corylus avellana and midland hawthorn Crataegus laevigata; the last is strongly associated with ancient woodlands. The ground flora is characteristic of the woodland type and dominated by dog’s mercury Mercurialis perennis and bluebell Hyacinthoides non-scripta. There are a variety of plants which are associated with ancient woodland sites, including yellow archangel Lamiastrum galeobdolon, wood anemone Anemone nemorosa and wood sedge Carex sylvatica. The diversity of the ground flora increases where the chalk underlying the boulder clay is close to the surface on the western side. A well planned programme of woodland management, including the re establishment of coppicing is enhancing the value of this site.

Species mentioned