Our glorious woodlands haven't always been protected. In fact, it was once a very different story. For author Derek Niemann, however, the protection of our green spaces is not only necessary for us, but necessary for future generations.
Derek Niemann
The battle to save Britain's ancient woodlands
Posted on: Thu 03-Nov-16 10:57:26
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"How much was a grove of wild daffodils worth? At the time, it seemed, not much."
Anyone who has stuck a child in wellies and taken them down to their local wood will know that it is the perfect playground for the imagination. A stick becomes a sword, a wand, a light sabre. There are fairies or goblins behind the old oak. There may even be a tiger or two… possibly.
Countless studies have shown that woods are good for all of us; they excite a child and give adults a sense of wellbeing and comfort. We delight in the bluebells, the primroses, the birds within an ancient wood. Woods are good for our heads.
So it’s incredible to think that there was a time, not so long ago, when our oldest woods were disappearing fast. Imagine a government plan to pull down all the churches and cathedrals, irrespective of age, aesthetic value or cultural significance. Something like that happened after the Second World War, when more than a third of Britain’s ancient woods were chopped down. Farmers got an extra field, foresters a new conifer plantation. But what about the dormice and badgers, the oaks and nightingales?
It proved to be a fascinating journey of discovery into how a whole nation could be held in thrall to certain ways of thinking.
Eighteen months ago, I set out to find out how this could have happened. I wanted to bring the statistics to life by talking to the people who cut woods down and the few who fought to save our ancient woods from complete destruction. It proved to be a fascinating journey of discovery into how a whole nation could be held in thrall to certain ways of thinking.
Those coming out of the war were told that the old woods were ‘derelict’, ‘scrub’, ‘unproductive’. They needed to go. Farmers were said to be ‘reclaiming’ woodland for agriculture, even though the land on which many of these woods stood had been forested for thousands of years – it had never been ploughed. Roads – especially motorways – were deliberately driven through woods so that the driver would have an interesting view.
It was heartbreaking to find that many of the people taking woods down did so for laudable reasons. I met kind-hearted farmers who cleared away copses to grow more food because that was what the country wanted. Foresters were driven by the mantra that Britain needed wooden pit props to provide us with coal. What use was a slow-growing oak when a Sitka spruce could grow three times as fast? How much was a grove of wild daffodils worth? At the time, it seemed, not much.
But thankfully we know better now. There are still wonderful woods for us to visit, many of them owned by conservation bodies such as the Woodland Trust, the wildlife trusts and the National Trust. The story of how a few enlightened people managed to change the public mood and persuade those in power that these ancient woods have a value that extends beyond pounds and pence is fascinating in itself.
Not enough of us venture outside, and not enough go to explore the woods. Don your wellies, wrap up warm, and prepare to be uplifted.
Derek's book, A Tale of Trees, is published by Short Books and is available from Amazon.